


Coming To Terms With Magic

by ElizabethGugino



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-19
Updated: 2015-09-19
Packaged: 2018-04-21 11:30:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 32,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4827542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElizabethGugino/pseuds/ElizabethGugino
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma and Regina's family continues to grow through everything that continues to get thrown their way. When Emma finds out that Regina is pregnant, she goes into major protective mode. But what she is really protecting them from is a specific villain that has yet to make an appearance in Storybrooke. SEQUEL TO WPCTS. Read that first! *Magic Baby fic*</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Second Chances

**Author's Note:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR THE CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her. :)

Many things in Emma Swan's life have surprised her in more ways than just one. She had started to expect random things to happen and her level of surprise had begun to go down significantly. However, there are still moments that catch her completely off guard. Kind of like this one.

"Emma, baby, can you hear me? Come on, Emma, open your eyes." Regina demanded as she lightly patted the blonde's face. Emma's eyes started to open slowly, blinking rapidly to help adjust for the light that was coming in.

"Gina, what happened? Why am I on the floor?" Emma seemed a bit confused as to the reason of her being on floor. If only she had remembered the conversation that she was having before she fainted. The blonde pushed herself up onto her elbows and closer to Regina. She realized that she had attracted quite a bit of attention by her little episode, whatever that may have been. Henry, Snow, Charming, and Doc had all gathered around to make sure that she was okay, while Regina kneeled over Emma protectively, pretty much preventing anyone to come even remotely close to the blonde. The rest of the party goers were still in the other room, probably having been instructed to do so by Snow once she noticed the situation in the foyer.

"Well, my dear, you just fainted a bit. I didn't realize telling you was going to cause such a reaction."

"Tell me what? All I remember is talking about Gwen's magic and how she is going to have lessons with Rumple and that somebody more powerful than Rumple is actually planning all of this. Then we sent Henry into the kitchen with my mom and Gwen. You said you had something to tell me, but then you started crying and oh…" Emma's gaze into the brunette's eyes intensified tenfold when she finally remembered what it was that Regina had told her. At first, her expression imitated that of someone who would be absolutely stunned and confused, then it turned into questioning the brunette for the truth. Regina just nodded her head to confirm the blonde's suspicions. Ever since they met, they've always been able to have silent conversations just by looking into each other's eyes. Emma just stared at her wife completely awestruck. The brunette moved towards the blonde, took her hand and helped lift her off the floor, while Charming ran up behind to put his hands under his daughters arms to help support her.

"Careful, Emma, you hit your head slightly."

"Dad, I'm fine. I'll be fine. I'm… more than fine." Emma never took her gaze away from Regina's. The brunette was grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Charming, Snow, and the others were all confused. Clearly, Emma and Regina were thrilled about something but what about was unknown to the onlookers. All except little Gwen. Since birth, her and her blonde mother have always had a magical connection of sorts where they just knew what was going on. Regina had always despised it (and was kind of jealous) but in this case, she was quite thrilled that their young daughter was able to hold her tongue on matters such as this. Especially since she was not ready to tell the world yet.

"Is it safe to assume that you two have some talking that you need to do alone?" Snow had chimed in only because it was starting to become quite awkward in the foyer with the two women just staring at each other and the little four year old giggling to herself. Emma then forced her eyes away from Regina and onto Snow.

"Yeah, Mom, we do need to talk, but it can wait until a little later when Gwen is in bed." Emma took her wife's hands in hers and gave the biggest grin to Regina.

"Emma. Regina. Why don't we take the birthday girl for the night? I'm sure she would just love to have some of Granny's special ice cream cookie cake. Then she could have a sleepover with us. And Henry, would you like to join us?" Snow looked to Henry with pleading eyes. He should realize that she was trying to get Emma and Regina some alone time.

"Uhh… yeah. Grams, I'll join you guys."

"Great! Gwen, let's go get your overnight bag while Henry says bye to all the guests and your mothers." As she said this, she walked towards Gwen, took her little outstretched hand and led her up the staircase to her second floor bedroom.

Regina and Emma watched the whole scenario play out. Neither of them really wanted to be separated from their daughter on her birthday or even from Henry, who was only going to be there for a few days. However, they also wanted some alone time. Emma was definitely excited but considering Regina's past, she was quite concerned.

After what felt like forever, the remaining guests had left the house to retire to their own. Snow and Charming led Gwen to their car with her little duffel bag in Charming's hand. Henry was following close behind them. Once he reached the gate at the end of the walkway, he turned around to look at his two mothers standing on the porch.

Since Gwen was born, Regina had taken a liking to wearing the 'mom' jeans. It never really mattered what she wore though, she looked just as hot in them as she did in her normal mayoral business suits. Emma, on the other hand, went back to her traditional tank top and skinny jeans. Henry couldn't help but notice the loving gesture between the two standing on the porch. Emma had her right arm around Regina's waist, pulling her closer. Regina had wrapped her left arm behind Emma's back and her right arm across the blonde's waist, meshing her fingers together and laying her head gently on Emma's shoulder. There have been many times that Henry has seen this, but never had there been so much love radiating between them.

"Bye, Moms. I'll see you tomorrow." Henry said as he waved goodbye and turned around to walk to the car.

Once the car pulled away with the blonde's parents and their grandkids, Emma turned her head towards Regina's and placed a gentle kiss on her head. The blonde noticed that she still smelled of apples from her shampoo and conditioner from that morning. Never would she ever get sick of that smell or even having her wife so close in her arms.

"So, baby, what do ya say we head inside and have that conversation?" The blonde asked lovingly, still not moving from her current position. Regina lifted her head to look up to Emma, their noses almost touching.

"Yes, dear, I think that sounds like a great idea but only if you can continue to hold me like this."

"Well, I think that is a request that I can handle. And I'll add one better." Emma had a small smirk on her face Regina knew that look all too well.

"What… Emma, no. Whatever you're thinking, no. I know that look. Don't do it."

"What are you talking about, Gina? I don't do anything I'm not allowed to do." She tried to reassure Regina but her smirk just kept getting bigger. The blonde may be a lie detector but that definitely didn't help when she tried to hide things from her brunette wife.

"You are so full of shit, Emma. That grin even says so!"

"Well then, since that's settled…" Emma quickly bent her knees slightly, put her left hand behind the brunette's knees and swept her off her feet. Regina wrapped her arms around Emma's neck.

"Emma, be careful, you just hit your head."

"Baby, today I am pampering my wife. I just found out that she is carrying my child. So I am going to carry her over the threshold and upstairs to our bedroom where I am going to worship her." Before Emma could say any more, Regina had pulled Emma's face to hers and captured the soft, pink lips with her own. That was all the confirmation that the blonde needed.

Emma did exactly what she said she would. Walked over the threshold, through the foyer, up the stairwell, and into the master bedroom, all while kissing Regina and rarely coming up for air. The blonde walked over to the bed and gently laid Regina down on her back. And now she could see it. Like really see it. Regina had a little bit of a glow to her. She looked even more beautiful than she ever had.

Emma climbed onto the bed next to the brunette, being careful not to put any pressure on her lower abdomen. She started kissing Regina very gently, then slowly turning it into a more passionate and desperate kiss. Emma knew she had to be careful not to go too far so she pulled back just enough to be hovering above the brunette. She kissed the tip of Regina's nose and the brunette responded with a simple smile and closed her eyes for a moment to relish in the blonde's embrace. The blonde began to kiss down Regina's jaw line.

"I love you." Emma said, then started moving her lips further south down the brunette's neck.

"You are beautiful." Emma moved lower to Regina's chest.

"You are my everything." Moving to the valley between the brunette's breasts.

"I love that you are carrying my child." The blonde untucked Regina's shirt and pulled it up to rest just above her belly button. Emma lowered herself even further to place light, feathery kisses over Regina's abdomen. The brunette's smile grew bigger and turned into some laughter when the blonde started to whisper to her stomach while her moving lips were ghosting over Regina's skin.

"My dear little one, you have surprised your mother and I. We were starting to think that you would never come around but here you are. I'm here for you little one, I always will be." Emma moved her gaze to Regina's while she talked to the baby through its mother's belly. The blonde then crawled up to the headboard and propped herself up, pulling the brunette in closer to snuggle against her chest.

"Gina, how long have you known?" Emma asked while resting her head on Regina's.

"Only a few days, but I wanted to have an appointment with Dr. Whale before I got your hopes up."

"You could have told me before. I would've gone with you, ya know." Emma picked up her head slightly from resting on Regina's and looked down at her wife, who responded with looking back up at her.

"I know, dear, but I needed to get my mind wrapped around the idea of really bringing a child into this world." That's all Regina had to say to convince Emma that it was the right choice. They easily resumed their original position leaning into each other.

"I'm so happy and excited. And I don't have to carry this one! Baby, for my sake, I really hope you don't get any of the really bad side effects."

"And what, may I ask, are you referring to?"

"Oh, you know. The morning sickness, the frequent feeling of nothing being clean enough, drastic mood swings…" Emma said while she raised her hand to count on her fingers while she listed off all of the effects.

"You just don't want to deal with them."

"No, that's not it. I've been through them. Twice. And I don't want you to have to go through it too."

"That's sweet of you, but I have done this part before." Regina was starting to get a little tense at the topic of conversation. Her first pregnancy was nothing but a nightmare and even ended just as badly.

"Yeah, babe, I know. I'm also worried about all of that. How do we know we won't run into any of those complications?"

"We don't, really, but Dr. Whale reassured me that things are much different now that we have advanced medicine and that the situation is also completely different."

"I'd like to know how it's different from your previous pregnancy!"

"This is a healthy, magical baby. And it will be different."

"Well, I do know one other thing that will be different."

"What's that, dear?"

"I will be here with you the whole time. I promise. Right alongside you, going through everything with you. And before we know it, we'll have a beautiful little baby in our arms." Regina was staring up at Emma as she announced her small vow of dedication.

"I love you, Emma!" With that, Regina leaned forward and captured the blonde's lips once again.

Emma pulled back and noticed that Regina had tears in her eyes. The brunette had no doubt in her mind that Emma was going to be with her through the whole pregnancy. That loving support system that should be there all the time. Not only did she have her wife but she also had her four year old daughter and her nineteen year old son. Not to mention, Emma's parents. Even though, they were just starting to get along quite well, the brunette knew that regardless of the situation, they would always help as much as they could.

Emma took her left hand from Regina's stomach to reach up to the brunette's face. She wiped away the tears with her thumbs. Then leaned in to place her lips on the brunette's, silencing all sobs wanting to escape Regina's body. The kiss started out sweet and gentle but soon, Regina had turned it into a much more passionate moment. With Emma's hand slowly moving to Regina's luscious hair and down the back of her neck, the brunette began to use her hands to unbutton Emma's shirt. Pulling away slightly, the blonde looked into Regina's lust filled eyes.

"Regina, are you sure about this?"

"Yes, dear. I've never been so sure about anything in all my life."

"Well, okay, as long as you are okay with this."

"Yes, I am. Now shut up and kiss me."

And that's exactly what Emma did. Most of the night until Regina's delicate form collapsed on top of Emma's. The blonde will never get tired of having her wife so close. Soon enough though, the brunette had succumbed to sleep and the blonde joined her very soon after.

They slept peacefully most of the night. That is, until Regina was pulled from her slumber by the overwhelming sensation of her stomach trying to force its contents out of her. The brunette practically leapt off the bed and ran into the en suite bathroom.

The blonde woke suddenly from the abrupt movement off of the bed. Coming out of her sleepy state, she realized exactly what was happening. It was the beginning of morning sickness. She was truly hoping that Regina wouldn't be cursed with it but they had no such luck, it seemed.

After giving Regina a few moments, Emma wandered into the bathroom. She grabbed a wash cloth from the sink, wet it down with cool water, and went to sit close behind Regina so when the brunette was finished emptying the contents of her stomach into the toilet, she would be there for her to lean back into. Emma remembers these moments all too well and all she ever really wanted was someone there with her. She would never let her wife be alone. Especially when such a joyous thing made her feel like her body was betraying her again and again.

"Babe, are you okay?" Emma knew the answer. The question was quite a stupid one but she had to ask.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. You didn't have to come in here." The brunette was finally relaxing back into Emma.

"No, I didn't have to, but I wanted to. I'm not going to let my wife go through this alone because this is one of the worst things. It feels like your body is completely betraying you and all you want is someone to hold you and tell you it's going to be okay. Trust me, I remember. It's only been four years since I was in the same position." The blonde wrapped her arms around the brunette and tried to rock her a little bit to give her a sense of comfort. Regina turned her face into the blonde's neck. A few tears were rolling down her cheeks.

"Is it always as bad as this, Emma?"

"It might get even worse, babe. There will always be something that will be bothering you. And sometimes, you'll feel like you don't want to burden me with anything. But I swear to you, I will be here. You can tell me everything."

"Thank you, Emma. I love you."

"I love you too, babe." Emma was very content, sitting on the bathroom floor with Regina in her arms.

"Emma?"

"Yes, Gina?"

"Can we go back to bed now?"

"Of course, dear." The brunette leaned forward so Emma could pick herself up off the ground and then pick up Regina. She practically carried her back to bed where they stayed for the rest of the morning. At least until they received the inevitable phone call from their kids, wanting to come home.

XXXXX

7 Years Earlier

"PAIN. PANIC. GET DOWN HERE. NOW!" Fire had engulfed the tall man's entire body as his anger raged on. He stood in the middle of a dark and dreary cave where he did his most work. While checking up on his 'success' of the day, he noticed one very small glitch in the report.

"Coming, your most lugubriousness." Two rather small, worm-like creatures hopped down the steps towards their master.

"What is this?" The fiery man pointed down into a ravine where thousands of ghostly bodies were floating around in a circle. He had noticed a beautiful creature floating down in the depths of the fluorescent green liquid.

"That is a soul."

"Why yes, it is. But whose is that?"

"Ummm… that's Maleficent."

"And why is she in there?"

"Because that's where everyone goes when they die…."

"WHY IS SHE DEAD?"

"Uh… uh... I don't know… I mean, she has some pretty evil friends. I'm sure she did something to piss them off." Panic was starting to get a little uncomfortable with the conversation. He knew just how much Maleficent meant to the man and now, Pain and himself were going to have to come up with a good reason as to why their master's lover was currently swimming in a pool of dead souls.

"Well, you'd better find out! Get me the Fates!" And with that, Pain and Panic excused themselves from the 'office space' and went to retrieve the Fates.

All this time, he thought, I thought you were mad at me. I couldn't figure out what I had done to make you never want to come back. I loved you, Mal. I still do. What did you do to cause this? I will figure out a way to get you back. I promise.

XXXXX

Very soon after he sent Pain and Panic away, the Fates arrived to explain the predicament he now found himself in.

"You're here. Good. You can tell me why my beloved is currently floating in a pool of souls." His back was turned to the Fates, trying to keep calm in order to actually get the information he wanted from them.

"We cannot tell you such a thing, as it was not our decision to put her in there." The Fates, old, wrinkly, and quite ugly, were not about to just give up the reasons as to why Maleficent currently resided in the pool of souls.

"Well somebody better start telling me SOMETHING or I'm going to get EXTREMELY ANGRY!" Flames were now engulfing his entire body. He quickly spun around to face the Fates and then walked towards them as if he would be able to intimidate them.

"All that we can say is that she got herself into a bit of a mess and there was no way out."

"That doesn't seem like a normal answer from the Fates. There is someone forcing you not to say anything, isn't there?"

"No, sir, there isn't. We just don't like to dwell on the past."

"Ah ha! But you are all about the past. Mentioning the past isn't going to harm you or anyone else. JUST TELL ME! I need to know what happened to her." He was finally at his breaking point. If they withheld information from him any longer, he was going to blow a gasket.

"You must not act as if this was our fault. We have had nothing to do with Maleficent's fate, ironically. However, she got herself into a conundrum with her good pal, Regina, the Evil Queen. Although, it was not Regina who did Maleficent in, it was Regina's true love."

"Can I bring her back? I need her by my side."

"We will say this, you will have to give up a lot in order to save her. What that is, we don't know, it can only be decided upon by yourself. However, a deal must be struck. As far as we know, there is only one man that can accomplish that. We must leave now." And with that, they were gone.

Hades always knew that there was more to Maleficent's life than what she was letting on, but knowing that one of her greatest friends turned on her confused Hades to the extreme. Why would they want to be rid of Maleficent if she was her friend? Most importantly, what is this deal that Hades will make to get her back in his arms?


	2. Dreamstate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

Henry was sitting in the driver's seat of his 2013 Kia Sportage. The radio was playing his favorite tunes from the 90's era. Granted, he wasn't from the time period but he definitely liked the music.

He had just left his mother's house and was on his way back to school. He had only been home for the weekend as a surprise to his little sister.

Just outside the Storybrooke town line, it had started to rain enough to be a nuisance for drivers. Henry did his best to concentrate more on the roads than on the music because he remembered one of the most important things he had been taught during drivers training. 'When it rains, especially right when it begins, the roads could potentially be slippery. The oil build up from cars have a tendency to create a slick covering when water is added.' He could still hear his Ma's voice in his head telling him.

Even though he had heeded the warning, sometimes it's not enough to prevent bad things from happening.

Not knowing how he didn't notice, the patch of road he was on made his car start to lose control. Before he knew it, the Kia had turned so the passenger side was facing forward. This situation prevented him from being able to control the speed in which he was going. Coming out of the slick area with his car facing the wrong direction caused the vehicle to start flipping down the road and into the ditch. Henry kept his hands on the steering wheel but when he realized there was nothing he could do, he just took in his surroundings trying to make sure that he would remember everything. When the car was flipping, Henry noticed that his phone was bouncing all over the cab and it would be difficult to get to once the car was no longer in motion.

Suddenly, the car stopped. It was lying on the driver's side and all of the glass windows had shattered by this point. Some shards of glass had pierced Henry's skin when the windows gave out. His forehead, cheeks, chin, neck, and forearms had all been exposed and was now slowing dripping blood. Henry could feel himself losing consciousness as he looked around the cab for his phone. Finally, he saw his phone down by his feet, lying on the door of the car. He tried to release the seat belt, but found that it had jammed in the rolling of the car. Trying his best to reach the phone, he was able to move his leg enough to push it towards his hand. By this point, Henry knew that he only had a minute or two at most before he lost consciousness. He was losing way too much blood.

Picking up the phone, turning on the screen, he dialed 9-1-1. Almost immediately, the dispatcher answered the call.

"911, what's your emergency?"

"Hi… I'm Henry Swan-Mills… I've been in a car accident. I think I'm only… ten minutes outside of Storybrooke, Maine. I'm losing… a lot of… blood…. Please help…"

"Sir, do you know what road you are on?"

"Umm… I think… I'm…" Before Henry could answer, the phone slipped from his hand as hand fell into unconsciousness.

"Sir? Hello? Sir, are you there?"

XXXXX

Henry could hear his mother. His brunette mother calling for him. He couldn't place where it was coming from though. He forced himself to open his eyes. It was a much harder task than he could have imagined.

Opening his eyes just enough to see his surroundings, he noticed he was still in his car, but this time there were EMTs and police officers and his moms. His moms? Oh god, he thought, why are they here? They shouldn't have to see me like this?

From a distance, Regina noticed that Henry had tried to open his eyes. The officers had held the blonde and brunette back because of the seriousness of the accident. But once the brunette had seen her son waking up, there was no way a couple police officers could stand in her way. She ran up to where the windshield should have been and tried to get as close to Henry as she possibly could without endangering herself from the wreckage.

"Henry! Oh god, Henry! Honey, you're going to be okay. Just hang in there for me, okay? For me and your mom and your sister, okay? You're strong, Henry. We know you are."

"Mom… where is… Ma?"

"She is right here, Henry. She is right behind me."

"Hey, kid."

"How did… you get… here… so quick?"

"Henry, they've been trying to get you out for the forty-five minutes. They called us once they put the info in on your license plate."

"Oh so… I've been out… for a while then… huh?"

"Yeah, kid, you have. Look, I need you to talk to your mother while I help the officers get you out, okay? We need you to keep talking."

"Okay, Ma." Henry promised his Ma that he would keep talking. Regina went to reposition herself so her back was up against the hood of the suv and she could reach her arm into the vehicle to hold her son's hand.

"Henry, tell me about your classes that you're taking."

"Uhmmm… I'm taking a philosophy class that is pretty boring. There is a creative writing class."

"That's wonderful. Are you working on any pieces right now?"

"Yeah. It is about a Knight who is prophesized to save the Evil Queen from herself. They win a battle that had been going on for a very long time." Henry paused a moment to cough and catch his breath. There was a little bit of blood that appeared on his lower lip. "The Knight helped the Evil Queen be seen as no longer Evil but quite the opposite. They grew to… love each other… and eventually got married… I still don't know…. how to… end it…. but it has to…. be… happy…"

Henry's eyes slowly shut and his breathing slowed tremendously. Regina began to panic. She was losing her baby boy. The brunette held out her hand to rest over Henry's heart. With all of her might she was trying to get her magic to heal whatever it could.

"Henry. Come on, Henry. Stay awake. You have to keep your eyes open, baby. Henry. HENRY!"

XXXXX

Emma awoke to the brunette turning over repeatedly on the other side of the bed; almost like she was thrashing about from a nightmare. 'Oh no!' Emma thought. 'She really is having another nightmare.' The blonde quickly moved to where she could move the brunette into her lap and gently wake her.

"Baby, wake up. Come on. It was just a nightmare. I'm here now. I'm here." The blonde said to the brunette, hoping that it was enough to wake her from the darkness.

A sharp intake of air suddenly came from Regina as she shot up out of bed and away from the horrible nightmare that she just lived through. And to her, it felt quite realistic. She continued to whimper and breathe quickly causing her to hyperventilate. Emma took her hand and cupped Regina's cheek, bringing the brunette's face closer to hers. Green eyes looked deeply into chocolate eyes that were laced with worry and fear. Emma thought back to the times when they first started sleeping in the same bed. Regina had been bothered by horrible nightmares and Emma would spend hours holding and comforting the brunette until she was finally calm enough to go back to sleep. The only thing is, it had been almost two years since the last nightmare. They had been thinking that they were done and over with but apparently with the new surge of hormones raging within Regina's body, they were coming back with fervor. This pregnancy was going to be very long and tiring if things like this keep happening.

"Henry. It was Henry. He was hurt and I… I couldn't do anything. I had no magic. Emma, I couldn't do anything to save our son! It felt so real." Regina glanced down at her hands, wondering what had been stopping her. Tears were continuing to run down her face.

"Regina, baby, look at me. You're okay. Henry is okay. It was just a nightmare. It wasn't real. I'm right here with you, okay? And Henry is at his grandparent's house with Gwen. Remember? They are fine. I promise."

"But it just felt so real, Emma. I… I don't…" The brunette leaned into the blonde seeking more comfort. She glanced over at the nightstand with the alarm clock and noticed it was already 8:30am. Way later than she normally sleeps. "Emma. We should call them. Let's go and meet them at Granny's. I need to our babies." And with nothing more to say, she began to get out of bed. But not quick enough to escape the grasp of Emma's hand pulling her back.

"Whoa, babe. Calm down. My cell phone is right here. We'll call them on speakerphone, okay? It might be able to calm your fears a little, at least until we physically see them."

"Okay. I think I can handle that." Emma pulled her phone out, went through her recent calls, pulled up Snow's phone number and pressed send. The dialing tone was heard throughout the bedroom.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Mom. Regina and I are on speakerphone. We were wondering if we could talk to the kids."

"Uh, yeah. Of course. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, it will be."

"Okay, here they are."

"Thanks."

"Hi Momma. I missed you so much. When do I get to see you? Are you going to come pick me up? Where's Mommy? Is Mommy there too?" Gwen's little voice came through the speaker and to Regina, it made it seem like everything was right with the world.

"Yes, baby, Mommy is here." Regina answered her young daughter.

"Mommy, are you okay?"

"Yes, Mommy is okay. Is Henry there with you?"

"Yep. Henry is here. I will give him the phone now." Both mothers hear a bit of a shuffle for the hand off.

"Hey Ma. Hey Mom."

"Good morning, Henry. What do you say you convince your grandparents to take you and your sister to meet us at Granny's? Your mom had a bit of a nightmare and we both think that seeing you and Gwen would calm her down a little bit." Emma explained briefly, not wanting to alert him of anything.

"Yeah, I think that's doable. Let me ask Gramps real quick." Henry pulled the phone away but didn't bother to cover the speaker. So Regina and Emma heard everything that he was saying. 'Hey Gramps, can we go to Granny's? Ma wants to meet us there.' But all they heard as a reply to that a low muttered response. "Hey Ma. Yeah, we'll be there in about 30 minutes. Sound good?"

"Sounds great, kid. We'll see you there. Love ya!"

"Love you, too. Bye."

Emma pressed the end button and set her phone on the nightstand. Leaning back to Regina, she plants a quick kiss on her cheek before getting up out of bed.

"See, they're okay. We'll see them in 30 minutes. Now. Let's get ready to go." And with that being said, Regina didn't hesitate to get out of bed herself and get ready to go meet their kids at the diner.

XXXXX

Thirty minutes later, both Emma and Regina were holding their kids in their arms at Granny's diner. Just having walked in the door, they scoped out the corner booth and went to claim it for their own. Gwen was sat in the corner between Emma and Regina. Snow sat next to Regina, Charming sat next to Snow which was opposite Emma and Gwen. Henry sat opposite Snow and Regina. Shortly after they sat down, Ruby came to get their order.

"Good morning, Charming-Swan-Mills clan. What can I get for you?" Ruby always did have to make her waitressing interesting.

"Good morning, Ruby." Regina answered. "I would like my usual please."

"Alright. Snow?"

"Usual."

"Charming?"

"Same."

"Boy, you guys are just a hoot in the mornings. Henry?"

"Uhhh… I would like the pancakes, please. With strawberries on top with just a tad bit of whipped cream."

"Mmm. That sounds delicious. Alright, Emma, what can I get for you?"

"I don't know, hold on." Emma looked over to Gwen. "What should we have Gwennie? What sounds good?" Gwen glanced at the menu, then looked back to Emma. She never actually said anything, but she was still communicating to Emma what she thought they should get. "I agree. That does sound very yummy. Ruby, we would like to have the French toast with strawberries and a side of bacon."

"Okie dokie. Your order should be up in ten minutes." And Ruby took her leave back to the kitchen.

"Emma," Regina said, "what was that? Did Gwen actually tell you what she wanted or did you just get what you wanted?"

"Oh, no, Gwen answered my question. Did you not hear her? I thought she said it out loud."

"No, she did not." Regina was a bit peeved at hearing this, but she looked down to Gwen. "Honey, did you talk to Momma?"

"Yes."

"But did you use your words?" The brunette had a very soft tone that she used whenever she spoke to Gwen. It was never demeaning, instead, she always spoke to her as if she about ten years older than she really is.

"No, Mommy. I didn't use my words. I used my telel…. telelap…. telepathy." Gwen knew that she was encouraged to physically speak more than just use her mind to talk to her blonde mother. However, sometimes, she thought that this way of talking was much better. Regina never liked it though, because it made her feel like she was left out of something super important.

"Gwennie, what did we talk about? Aren't you supposed to use your words? Mommy can't hear your beautiful sweet voice when you talk inside, remember?" Emma was able to talk to Gwen much easier when it came to the telepathy. She was trying to teach her daughter that it was impolite to not talk out loud when she is around the rest of her family.

During this whole exchange, Snow, Charming and Henry just watched on in earnest, not really knowing if they should say anything. Snow noticed how Regina tensed up when Emma began talking to Gwen and knew that this subject was definitely something that should be talked about with Regina.

"Are you going to apologize to Mommy for not doing what she asked of you?" Emma asked.

"Yes. Mommy, I'm sorry. I really wish you could hear me too." Gwen crawled over to the brunette's lap and gave her a quick hug, then came back next to Emma and grabbed the crayons that Ruby had set on the table for her.

"Me too, baby. Maybe someday." At this, Emma looked up curiously at the brunette. All the while she was pregnant for Gwen, she always had a knack for knowing what exactly the little one was up to and what she wanted. But not actually putting those things together until now, she thought that maybe, just maybe, Regina would have a similar advantage with the baby that she is currently carrying.

"So, Henry, how is your sword fighting these days? Getting any workouts in at school?" Charming asked Henry, just to change the subject. Once Emma had finished thinking about the new baby, she turned her attention to her son's conversation with his grandfather. This allowed Regina and Snow to have a separate conversation.

"Regina, is everything okay? I sensed there was something up when I got the call this morning from Emma. And I'd like to think that I know you well enough to know when something is wrong." Snow tried to keep the questions fairly easy. She didn't want to seem like she was prying into her daughter's life through her wife.

"Yeah, Snow, everything is okay. Well, mostly better than okay." Regina had smiled at her own statement for the first time that day. Trying to keep this new baby under wraps for a while, she has to be careful with what she says.

"Are you sure? I mean, I really think that it really bothers you that Gwen can speak with Emma in her mind."

"It does, Snow. But I'm getting used to it. It's just yet another connection that I don't have with one of my children and Emma does. I think I would honestly like to stop talking about this. I know you're trying to help but unless you can actually help me to hear my daughter via telepathy, then please keep to yourself on the matter."

"Sorry, Regina, I didn't mean anything by it."

"I know, Snow, and I really appreciate the concern."

"Have you and Emma figured out what to do about her magic yet?" Snow wanted to change the conversation and that was the first thing that popped into her head.

"We have talked about it, but we have not come to a conclusion quite yet." Regina was being very stoic with her answers now. "I thought that we might have to bind Gwen's power but I don't want to take away the connection that she and Emma have. It is a great comfort for Gwen and I'm not about to take what she knows away from her simply because she isn't being taught how to use her gift."

"Well, it sounds like you've kinda come to a conclusion to me." Right then, everyone's attention was turned towards a quick intake of air followed by incessant coughing. Charming had just been talking to Henry and Emma when he felt his lungs close up on him. He was having a hard time breathing.

"Honey, are you okay?" Snow asked. Just as she was reaching for his arm, he collapsed first onto the table and then off his chair and onto the floor. "CALL 911. NOW!"


	3. Our Little Secret

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

"Alright, Rumple, the floor is yours."

"Well, dearie, it just so seems that your precious daughter has magic abilities beyond anything than I ever thought."

"Yeah, she does, but what's it to you? You don't get to teach her anything until she is old enough to decide her own fate." Regina hated thinking about her daughter possibly going through anything of what she had.

"I'm going to offer this once, dearie, and you're going to want to listen. Things will start happening to your family if you don't allow me to at least start teaching how to control her magic. These things will be small at first but they will grow until they are life threatening. They aren't necessarily all in my control either, so don't think that this resides solely within my power. If it were up to me, I would've waited until the next product of true love had graced us with its presence." Rumple glanced down to Regina's waist quickly and then back up to meet her gaze and also Emma's. Regina felt uncomfortable with the way the conversation was headed but without even thinking about it, she raised her hand to rest on her lower abdomen.

"I don't want you to hurt her, Rumple." Emma was still slightly confused about the weird glances that were happening between the two, but Regina's last words made her acknowledge that her daughter really needed help.

"It's not her that would be the one getting hurt. I'm more afraid for myself than I am for her. She's bordering on having more power than myself, Regina, and you know what that means."

"Yes, I do. Rumple, you need to let me think about this and talk to Emma privately." Emma relaxed a little bit. Her wife was the strong one and to let her take the reins with these decisions was hard to handle but she trusted her.

"Fine. You have 48 hours to give me your answer. In the meanwhile, I suggest that you enjoy this time with your family." Without a trace, Rumplestiltskin had vanished. Regina turned to Emma and put her arms out where Emma met them with her own.

XXXXX

Nothing ever seems to go as planned. Or at least, that is how it goes for Emma and Regina. They were hoping to take the kids out to the park and have a nice afternoon together before Henry had to go back to school. Instead, they were sitting in the hospital waiting room with a nervous 19 year old and a very energetic 4 year old.

"Hey, kid. Why don't you take your little sister for a walk? Take her outside to the garden and down by the water. But be careful, please. She has a tendency to run off." Emma asked, wanting to talk to Regina alone. Snow had gone with Charming to be with him for all of the tests they were running.

"Sure, Ma. Uhhh, yeah." Henry walked over to where the young blonde was sitting in a chair next to her brunette mother. "Hey Gwen, what do you say about going for a walk? We could go down to the water and see if there are any ducks."

If anything was going to get Gwen's attention, that definitely would.

"Yeah, Henry, let's go. But we gots to ask Momma first." Gwen said as she hopped off the chair and ran towards her blonde mother. Why she didn't go to Regina since she was right next to her, they'll never know, but one thing was for sure. After this morning's mishap at the diner, Gwen was going to be using her words a lot more often. "Momma, can we go for a walk?"

"Yes, Gwennie, you and Henry can go for a walk. Be good for him and don't run off."

The blonde and the brunette watched happily as their little family walked off towards the Garden entrance. Emma didn't hesitate a moment when the kids disappeared from sight. She turned quickly to the brunette.

"Regina, do you know what this means? Do you remember what Rumplestiltskin told us about our family? This could be him warning us. I mean, why else would my dad, PRINCE CHARMING, of all people, ever have any medical issues like that. He hadn't even gotten any food yet and he was practically choking. Regina, we have to-" the brunette's fingers went up to cover the blonde's mouth to get her to stop talking. At least for just a moment.

"Honey, you need to relax. Your dad, as much as it pains me to say, is getting older. Things like this could happen all the time in the Enchanted Forest. Especially to very active men like your father." Regina removed her fingers from the blonde's mouth and leaned in for a quick kiss on the lips.

"How can you be so calm, Gina? I thought something really bad was going to happen to him and I couldn't do anything to help him. Instead, I had to watch while his face turned blue, and our four year old daughter was hiding her face in my chest. I'm not going to forget that happened any time soon. And neither is Henry or Gwen. We need to get this figured out before anything else goes wrong."

"Emma, calm down. We will have time to discuss this later. We'll figure it out-" Regina continued but was quickly cut off.

"GINA! Open your eyes. We need to know what to do like now. Who knows who could be the next. It could be my mother, or me, or one of the kids, or even you, Gina. I don't want to lose any of you. Not when I just got you. I haven't had enough time with all of you." Emma tilted her head down so her chin was almost touching her chest. Regina placed her hands within the blonde's, giving her some form of comfort. She could see Emma fighting the urge to cry. "I can't lose any of you."

The last statement was barely audible, but Regina heard it, no less. She also noticed the lone tear that dispelled from the blonde's right eye and rolled slowly down her cheek. The brunette removed her left hand from Emma's to quickly wipe away the tear, hoping to metaphorically wipe away the fear that resided within her wife. Regina couldn't remember the last time that she had seen Emma cry. Moving the same hand to the blonde's chin, she brought the green eyes back to her own chocolate eyes.

"That will never happen, Emma. We are strong and powerful and no matter what Rumplestiltskin has against our family, we can fight it. Besides, our time limit isn't up yet. We still have time to talk to him. I know how he works and he wouldn't do something like this until he said he would. Now, let's wipe away those tears and go find our kids. I'm sure they are probably hungry by now. We'll have to go get them some of that awful cafeteria food." Regina finished with keeping her eyes strongly focused on Emma's facial features, trying gauge what her reaction is.

"Okay. Let's go find them, but Regina, please promise me that you won't do anything… harmful without me around. Please?" The brunette was sure that the blonde's puppy dog eyes couldn't get any more convincing.

"I promise."

XXXXX

After the two mothers got their children fed, they returned to the waiting room just in time to discover that Charming was doing fine and that all of his tests came back good. He was to stay at the hospital for a few more hours to make sure the same thing doesn't happen again and Snow was staying with him. Emma and Regina knew that Gwen wouldn't be able to sit much longer so they left the hospital knowing that everything was fine.

The car ride home was something else. Every time the conversation would quiet down, Gwen immediately piped up to ask a question about Grandpa and how she was so scared of what happened. Emma knew that it would be hard for her 4 year old daughter to forget such a traumatic event, but that doesn't mean that she couldn't subdue the memory.

Regina and Emma decided to take the kids on the picnic adventure that they had originally planned for the day. Only an hour after returning home, they were on their way to their favorite picnic spot on the beach. The very same spot that Emma had taken Regina for their first date.

"Mom, why do we always come here after something tragic happens?" Henry asked even though he already knew the answer. He just wanted to make sure that his mothers knew that he was catching onto their act.

"Well, if you really must know, it's a happy place for us." Emma replied, looking at Regina. "This is where our first date took place. And ever since then, we've always found it rather refreshing to be here after something horrible has happened versus being at home. We have even come here during some of our biggest arguments but once we were here, we definitely couldn't stay angry with each other much longer." The blonde winked at Henry but he caught on to what his mother meant. His face turned pale. Emma just laughed, at least until Regina swatted her arm from beside her.

"Emma Swan-Mills, I would appreciate it if you left that part of our lives to ourselves. Henry is the absolute last person that wants to hear about it."

"Yep, Mom's right. I'm the last person that wants to hear about it. But seriously, don't think I don't know what you two do when you send Gwen and me away for a night. I'm not dumb."

At this, Emma and Regina stood shocked, mouths gaping, looking at one another and then back to Henry.

"Henry, whatever you think we did last night-" Regina started to explain.

"Mom, it's okay. I really don't need to know. You two needed some alone time. I get it. It just, unfortunately, happened while I was home for a weekend." Looking behind Emma, Henry saw Gwen crouched down playing in the sand contently. His mothers were still rather shocked from Henry's comment, so he gave them a moment to allow their minds catch up with his words while they all took a seat on the blanket that Regina had laid out on the sand.

"Uh, okay, kid. Thanks for the insight. But look, your mother and I have something that we want to tell you. Gwen already knows but she's been very good at keeping it secret, haven't you, Gwennie?" Emma turned around to capture her daughter's attention. Gwen instantly forgot about what she was doing in the sand and came to join her mothers and brother. "Gwennie, remember what we said needed to stay a secret yesterday?"

The little blonde nodded her head in understanding, remembering exactly what had transpired the day before.

"Would you like to tell brother what you found out?" Regina asked.

Again, the young blonde nodded her head and turned to face her big brother. Her blonde mother was still holding her by her waist while she leaned her back against Emma's shoulder. Whenever they put her on the spot like that, even in small, well-known groups of people, Gwen was still a little bit shy.

"What did you find out, Gwennie?" Henry asked, hoping to make his little sister a bit more comfortable with explaining what it was that she wanted to tell him.

Regina took hold of the four year old's hand in encouragement. It was then that she found the confidence to tell him.

"I'm going to be a big sister, Henry!"

XXXXX

Rumplestiltskin was working in his shop trying to mind his own business as he always usually is. He is very aware of the fact that the 'power couple' of Storybrooke were, once again, expecting a child. Normally, he would be ecstatic of the fact that there will be yet another magical child, but this time was different. The one that he had already wanted to teach magic, is now four years old and quite intelligent for her age. Rumple saw a very strong connection between the young girl and her blonde mother, the 'Savior'. And because of that, he believed that she proved that she could be much more of a success than Regina ever was. This time though, he wanted to use this child as a means to save people, not destroy them. Something was coming and it was going to be very detrimental to all of Storybrooke.

Rumple had been spending his latest hours, since talking with Regina and Emma, working on restocking some of his potion collection. God only knows, he might actually have to use some of it and he wants to be prepared if such occasions do arise.

As if sensing something changing in his shop's atmosphere, he paused his movements and brought his head up from his current task to listen closely. Not far behind him, a cloud of dark gray smoke appeared in the doorway and a womanly figure slowly reformed.

"Well, if it isn't my dear, Maleficent. It's been quite a while, don't you think?"

"It wouldn't have been if it weren't for the sleazy bitch of a witch."

"That's being a little harsh, dearie. What would your best friend say to that if she knew you were calling her that?"

"I'm pretty sure she could care less, Rumple, she is, after all, the one that trapped me in dragon form under a freaking library for 28 years."

"Yes, but you two never played nice with each other."

"Yeah, well, sending that blonde of hers to kill me was kind of the end of our unorthodox friendship."

"Whatever, dearie, believe what you will. I assume you have come here for a reason. I mean, you are back in human form. Last time I checked, there was only one way that could happen." Rumple said with an inquisitive look.

"And it did. But that's not why I'm here."

"Of course not, that'd be too nice."

"I'm here for revenge and I want your help. I would imagine that you will want to help me anyway."

"And whom, may I ask, is this revenge for?"

"The one and only, Evil Queen."

"Oh, my dear. Regina Mills is far from being the Evil Queen these days."

"I. Don't. Care. She deserves everything I could send her way."

"It's been years, Mal, why now?" Rumple was getting a little irritated. This was totally not part of his original plan.

"Because I now have the means to do it. And I have help. Not just from you."

"Oh, I get it, now. You're with him? He's going to help you? Wow, dearie, you're not messing around."

"No, I'm not. I'm going to hurt her where it hurts most but I need your help, too."

"What do you take me for? Some magical idiot that will do anything as long as I get paid back in return? Do you really know what you're asking to do? You're going to unleash two very powerful women with magic. They will take us down without having to think twice."

"They won't. Do you know why? They won't know we're coming. And if they don't know who's behind it all, they won't know how much power is required. Besides, I plan to get on the inside."

"How do you expect to do that?" Rumple asked even though he already knew the answer. In fact, he's already done something about it.

"You need to teach their young daughter magic. During her lessons, I will come to watch and see her potential. Then I will turn the child's mind against her mother's. This will get to Regina and hurt her where it hurts most."

"You really don't know who you are messing with, do you? It's going to be much more complicated than that, dearie."

"No, Rumple, it won't be. This plan is going to work and it will be perfect. By the time I'm done, Regina will be alone again and where she deserves to be. There is nothing you can say or do that will convince me otherwise. I'll be back soon to check on your progress, Rumple, and no backstabbing, you little imp. I'll know about everything you try to do."

Not wanting to linger around too long, Maleficent vanished once again, leaving Rumple to put all of the puzzle pieces together. How he always ends up doing the dirty work, he'll never know. Maleficent and her cohort have something big planned. Rumple is definitely interested in seeing where this might lead but he has no intentions of letting Maleficent win this round when he has had 'his town' just the way he likes it.


	4. Nothing is Something

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

"I'm going to be a big sister, Henry!"

"You're going to be a what?" Henry asked, slightly confused.

"Henry! I'm going to be a big sister! And you are going to be a big brother again. Be happy!" Gwen told Henry while she poked her little fingers at her brother's cheeks. She wanted him to smile but she got no reaction at all.

"Henry, dear, are you okay? You look a little pale." Regina noticed the color leaving her son's face and started getting concerned that it might not have been a good time to tell him about the baby.

"Uh… I'm fine. Mom. But is she serious? Are you guys having another baby?" Color was slowly starting to come back into his cheeks.

"Yes, honey. We are having another baby." The brunette reached for the blonde's left hand, which had left Gwen's waist. She then looked back up at Henry, hoping that he wouldn't be jealous like he was the last time they told him about being a big brother.

"Wait, so… Mom, you're carrying the baby this time?"

"Yes. We weren't trying for that exactly, but it happened."

"But I thought that Ma would've been the one to… ya know… because of your history and all with the last time you were… uhh… um…" He was beginning to lose his train of thought. He didn't want to offend his mothers but he also wanted to understand why they tried for another baby when there were so many struggles with the last. He remembered going through everything when Emma was pregnant. He was always so worried that something would happen to his ma and that no one would be around to help her. To help her or the baby, resulting in losing both of them.

"Henry, I think I understand why you're so leery about this. Your mother and I have talked about this and we think that as long as she stays very mindful of her physical movements over the coming months, she will do just fine. We both acknowledged her history and we also remember everything about my last pregnancy. It will be okay, Henry. We want you to be happy. We don't want you to worry about all of the things that could go wrong. That's for us to handle, not you. Do you think you can do that for us?" Emma had very few moments where she was truly honest about matters. This one, Henry knew, was no laughing matter. His ma was serious about him not worrying.

"I think I can do that, but you have to tell me about anything that goes wrong as soon as you possibly can." He noticed his mom's eyes light up when she recognized the sincerity of his agreement. "I just have a few questions. When are you due? And how many people know about this?"

"Well, Henry, I'm not quite sure when exactly I'm due but if I were to guess, I would say about mid-April."

"So, wait, you don't even know? Haven't you gone to the doctor?"

"Yes, I have. But he was pretty unclear about the due date as well. We will have to wait until it gets a little further into the pregnancy. Now, about how many people know about this? You're looking at all of them right now. Please, Henry, keep this between the four of us for now. Your grandparents don't need to know yet."

"Exactly, Henry." The blonde interrupted. "Because of previous things that have happened, we are keeping this to ourselves until we are out of the first trimester, at least. Then we'll gradually start telling people. If nobody knows until the baby is born, that would be fine by me, but I think physical evidence will be a little harder to hide." Emma was being serious, but this earned her a little slap from her wife.

"Okay. Cool." That's all that Henry answered with.

"That's it? That's all you've got?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, you told me not to worry. So that's my reaction. Cool. I hope I get a baby brother. One little sister is enough." Gwen heard what he said and dove, from Emma's arms, into her big brother, hoping to make him regret his comment about her. Both mothers laughed at their kids' playfulness. Henry allowed Gwen to practically beat him up and he was so careful about making sure that he wouldn't hurt her. While the kids continued on in this manner, the brunette leaned into the blonde looking for some comfort from the conversation they just had. Even though they were confident that this baby would be perfectly fine, Regina still had a feeling that something was different about this one. Very different. She just didn't know what it was yet.

XXXXX

A few hours later, the Swan-Mills family was back at their house, getting ready to settle in for the night. Emma had gone to oversee getting Gwen into bed. She then went to speak with Henry quickly about when he planned on leaving to go back to school the next day. Of course they had to talk about how well his car was doing. His blonde mother was always making sure that his car was in perfect working condition.

When all plans had been made and both kids in bed, Emma headed to be herself, hoping to find a certain brunette waiting up for her. The blonde walked into the master suite and immediately noticed that her wife was lying on her side, facing away from her, breathing steadily. Apparently, the excitement of the day had worn her out more so than the kids.

Without disturbing the peaceful brunette, Emma quickly slid under the covers of the bed and found a comfortable position rather close to her sleeping wife. All she wanted was to get a good night's rest and make sure her family got the same. However, Regina must've had a different plan.

XXXXX

Emma and Snow were out shopping for new clothes and shoes on a sunny fall day. The blonde had left her 'mini-me' with the brunette, hoping to get some decent mother/daughter bonding time in since it had been quite a while since that had happened. The two of them had found some really good deals on jeans and Emma was just dying for a new pair of boots that were just calling her name.

After what seemed like trying on every boot that they had on in the store, Emma finally found a pair that she could live with. Snow couldn't understand what was so different about them compared to the ones she already has, but she wasn't going to argue. A day with her daughter was already more than she could ask for. And because it was just the two of them out and about, they had to spoil their loved ones back at home.

On the way out to the car, Emma sensed something very awkward in the air. Her senses went into overdrive but she was having a hard time placing exactly what was wrong.

Suddenly, at least a dozen black crows came flying out of the sky towards Snow. The pixie-haired brunette (and her daughter) ran for the car. Coming into contact with the door handle, there was a small yellow-ish spark produced and the birds started flying in the opposite direction. With her hand completely wrapped around the door handle, Snow felt a surge of power run through her body. Her whole being began to shake with the unknown yellow magic enveloping her. Emma noticed this from the opposite side of the car and did not hesitate to rush to her mother's side. The blonde tried to grab the brunette's wrists but was shocked by the same yellow power that was currently torturing her mother. Forced to just watch what was potentially killing her mother, Emma kneeled on the ground near the brunette in hopes that she will fall from her position and be released by the magical power. And so, she was, not five seconds after the blonde was on her knees, she was able to catch her mother's limp body in her arms.

"Mom, look at me. Come on, you can do this. You're strong. Mom, MOM! Come on!" Emma pleaded with her mother, looking into the unresponsive eyes. The blonde started slapping Snow's face just enough to pull her from sleep, but there was still no response. "Okay, Mom, I'm taking you to Regina. She'll know what to do, okay? Hang in there, Mom. I just got you, I don't want to lose you after all we've been through."

Emma pulled her mother into her arms and proceeded with caution to touch the car, but once the initial contact was over, she realized that there would be no more harm coming from the car. She opened the door, set her mother in the passenger's seat, buckled her in, and then ran around to the other side of the car and got into the driver's seat. She was off and headed towards home before anyone could even get close to them.

XXXXX

"No… Snow, you're okay… you will be… okay. SNOW!" Regina had sweat beads dripping down the side of her face and she was tossing and turning on her side of the bed.

"Regina, sweetie, wake up." Emma said while gently shaking the brunette's shoulders. "Come on, baby. It was just a nightmare. Regina!" The tone of her wife's name was a little too rigid coming off of her tongue, but the brunette finally startled awake.

"Oh my god. Emma. It was… it was Snow. She was attacked. It was like some sort of curse or… a hex." Regina slowly turned her gaze to meet the blonde's. She was searching for an answer but she wasn't finding what she was looking for.

"Regina. Baby. It was a nightmare. My mother is fine. If she wasn't, I would've gotten a phone call. Okay? So, why don't we go back to sleep and we will talk to Snow in the morning." The blonde laid back down on her pillows, wrapped an arm around the brunette's waist and pulled her close.

"Emma?"

"Yeah, honey?"

"What are we going to do about Gwen's abilities?"

"Are we seriously talking about this now? Can't this wait until morning, Regina? We both need our sleep."

"No, I don't think this can wait any longer. I think she should take her to see Rumple for a few lessons, at least once a week until our trust in the man grows larger than a sugar snap pea." Emma laughed out loud at her wife's comparison.

"You really think that she should go see the man who single handedly turned you into the Evil Queen? The person that you really despise?" Emma's concern was becoming quite evident in her subtle reactions.

"Yes, I do. He may have taken my free will away but he taught me all that I know. The techniques of magic are all the same, no matter what side you're on. Good and Evil use the same basics, believe it or not."

"I would prefer not to believe it but since you seem so sure about this, then I guess we can give him a chance. We'll go see him tomorrow after Henry leaves."

"But don't you think Henry should be here to support his sister?"

"Honey, he has classes on Monday. He can't just stay here whenever the hell he pleases. I mean, don't get me wrong, I would do anything for that kid, but he needs to learn how to do things himself. And keeping him here because his sister is going through magic lessons would almost be the equivalent of making him drop out of school and becoming a permanent Mommy's boy. I highly doubt that you want that to happen."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Maybe we can convince him to come back and visit a little more often. That way, Gwendolyn will have a pretty awesome role model."

"I think she already has some pretty great role models. Alright, can we go back to sleep now?" Hearing her wife's evident sleep deprivation, Regina leans in to place a chaste kiss on the blonde's lips.

"Yes, dear, I think we can. I love you." And just like that, Regina snuggled into Emma. Finally giving in, Regina relaxed her body into Emma's and fell back into a deep, dreamless sleep.

XXXXX

After a couple hours of doing nothing but lying in bed with her wife, the blonde decided that she probably wasn't going to get any more sleep at all. So, she extricated herself from the brunette's grasp, and headed down to the kitchen to begin a surprise breakfast for the family.

Not long into it, the miniature blonde slowly padded her feet into the kitchen. Emma turned around just in time to notice a head covered in messy blonde hair was walking around the other side of the kitchen island.

"Good morning, kido. Why are you up so early?" Instead of a verbal answer, Gwen just attached herself to her blonde mother's thigh. "Ya know, Gwennie, I can't very well make your mommy breakfast if I have you hanging on my leg like that." The blonde tried, but that didn't work to convince her daughter to detach herself.

Emma turned the stove down just a little bit so she wouldn't burn anything, then gently grabbed Gwen's tiny hands while she knelt down to her daughter's height, bringing those tiny arms around her neck.

"Now, Gwen, what do you say to helping me make mommy breakfast? Do you think you can do that? If we get it done quickly enough, we'll be able to have breakfast in bed. And maybe Henry will even join us. What do ya think?" Sparkling green eyes peered up at Emma and then a small smile appeared on the little girl's face.

"Yes, Momma. Let's make breakfast for Mommy and the baby!"

"Yes, Gwen. For Mommy and the baby." Emma stood and brought Gwen around to the other side of the counter and had her stand on a stool to reach the bowl of pancake batter. By the time they were done with all of the bacon, eggs, and pancakes, Gwen was an expert pancake batter mixer. Something that she was more proud of than Emma had ever imagined she would be.

The blonde duo plated the wonderfully made breakfast and placed it on a tray for Emma to carry up the stairs. Quietly, Gwen walked up to her brunette mother. She looked to Emma silently asking permission to wake Regina. Emma nodded in encouragement, but what she saw next was not at all what she was expecting.

Gwen softly poked her brunette mother's nose and a small wave of magic cascaded from the connection. Emma stood awestruck at the foot of the bed while Regina opened her eyes to one of the most beautiful scenes she ever could. Gwen staring back at her with big eyes. And then it happened.

Hi Mommy! We made breakfast for you.

Regina could hear her daughter's words but didn't see her lips moving. Slightly confused, she looked around the room, noticing Emma's presence and just smiled at her. Then she looked back at Gwen and it happened again.

Mommy, are you okay? I helped make you pancakes. They are super yummy.

"Gwendolyn, did you just… did you just talk to Mommy with your mind?" Regina looked longingly at her daughter who just nodded her head. "How did you do that, baby girl? I thought you could only talk to Momma that way." Emma was now sitting at Regina's feet, no longer surprised that her baby girl had figured out a way for her brunette mother to hear her thoughts as well.

"Good job, Gwennie. Now, why don't we show Mommy what we've been working on so hard this morning?" Gwen nodded her head to agree while Regina was still shocked but extremely ecstatic. The brunette looked to her wife and saw a genuine smile being directed to her. They could now both talk to their daughter by telepathy.


	5. Nightmares Really Can Come True

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

Regina was absolutely thrilled that she and Emma finally shared the same ability with Gwen. It was interesting when Emma had taken to motherhood so easily at first. Their ability to communicate allowed the blonde to know almost every single want that her daughter ever had. After about a year, they had finally figured out that Gwen had magical powers from birth. The first appearing to be telepathy, but only with Emma. Regina wouldn't admit that she had been quite jealous at the ability, Emma figured it out though. She knew that her wife would have a hard time accepting this new found ability, especially when she was the one that they had intended on carrying their child.

That no longer mattered, though.

The brunette could now speak with her daughter via telepathy and nothing would make her happier. Well, other than finally being able to carry Emma's child. Her excitement for that alone was difficult to contain, however, with Regina being who she is, keeping a personal secret was never hard. It was her business, not everyone else's. And that was what she intended on doing with this new gift of hers, along with the pregnancy. Who knew how long they were actually going to keep it a secret. Obviously, they would have to tell people soon enough when Regina starts to show, but they still had some time before that would happen.

Right now was all about celebrating with their family. The blonde and brunette mothers and their two, darling children.

"Gwen, why don't you go wake up Henry? He has to get ready to go back to school today." Emma asked gently. They had just finished their amazing spread of pancakes, bacon and eggs. The older blonde had noticed when her wife started to just push around some food on her plate and her face had gotten quite pale. Emma believed it would be best to send their daughter out of the room, at least for a few minutes. So Gwen climbed down the side of the bed and quickly shuffled her way out of the room with excitement about getting to wake up her big brother.

"Honey, are you going to be okay?" Emma asked once Gwen was out of the room.

"Yeah, I was just not feeling well for a minute. I think I will be okay now, though." Regina replied. A small smile forming on her lips.

Emma wasn't really buying it. Regina's facial color was still not back to normal. Honestly, if she couldn't get her wife to tell her the whole truth during this pregnancy, it was going to be a really rough time for the both of them.

"Regina, I can see on your face that you're not necessarily okay. If there is something here that you ate that is upsetting you, we should probably keep track of that. At least until this morning sickness is over."

"If it ever ends. Emma, baby, I am going to be fine. I think I was just feeling a little off for a minute."

At this, Emma moved closer to her wife on the bed. She placed her hand on the brunette's cheek and leaned in for a quick kiss.

"Good! Now, while I go take care of this, why don't you get ready for the day. We're going to have to meet with Rumple and I think it's best to do that as soon as possible. I don't want anything more happening to our family." The blonde was nervous to visit the imp, but she knew it had to be done. For her family's sake, she needed to get this figured out. If Gwen has some all mighty power that only he is aware of, then they have to help her learn to use her magic wisely.

"Okay. I love you."

"I love you, too." With that, Emma picked up the breakfast food tray and started for the door. That was until she heard Regina's voice.

"Baby?"

"Yeah, honey?"

"Everything will be okay. I promise." Regina gave her another small smile, but this time, she was completely sincere. Smiling back at her wife, she turned to continue down to the kitchen.

XXXXX

Henry was in his old room. His feet were hanging off of the old twin mattress but that was his bed that he had no intention of complaining about any time soon. Oddly enough, that bed reminded him of all of the hard times that he and his mothers had gone through to get to where they are now. And even though, some of those memories were not exactly good, he still wanted to remember them.

It was still fairly early for Henry to be awake on a weekend, but he was being roused by the smell of bacon. After a couple minutes of attempting to wake up, he heard the pitter patter of small feet entering his room. And then suddenly, he was being attacked by a rather petite four year old.

"HENRY! Wake up. Wake up! You missed breakfast in bed with Mommy and Momma. I got to help with the pancakes. And now Mommy can hear my inside voice. But you missed it all because you're a sleepy head." Gwen was bouncing on the side of Henry's bed. He had turned his body around so he could watch his little sister and make sure that she wasn't going to fall off the edge of the bed.

"Oh yeah? You think I'm a sleepy head? What about when Ma sleeps in, huh? She can sleep almost all day!" He maneuvered himself around so he could reach over to Gwen and pull her in by her stomach. She squealed happily from the sudden movement.

"Yes, Henry. You're a sleepy head." She continued to giggle all the while Henry was holding onto her.

"Well, then. I guess that's settled. Now, what about this breakfast that you spoke of? Did somebody say pancakes?" Henry started to tickle Gwen's sides to make her wiggle around even more.

"St-stop tic-tick-tickling me, Henry."

"And if I do, will you tell me where those pancakes are?"

"Y-yes! Pl-please, Henry. Please!" Gwen was almost red in the face from laughing so much. Finally, Henry stopped tickling her and sat her upright.

"So, where are those pancakes, huh?"

"They're in the kitchen, silly. Where else would they be?" Gwen rattled off as she was jumping off the bed and went to run out the door.

"Ha. Oh Gwen, you are too smart for your age." Henry loved playing games with his sister and he took all of the chances he could get while he was home for his short visits.

XXXXX

About an hour later, the four family members had reconvened in the foyer to say their goodbyes to Henry. He had to make his way back to school and his mothers had to go speak with Rumplestiltskin. As much as he wanted to be there for his little sister, he had to let his mothers take care of this one. He had no magic and definitely no pull with Rumple.

"You drive safe, okay, Henry? Promise me you'll be safe. Please?" Regina pleaded with her son. She still had the nightmare from the previous night fresh in her head.

"Yes, Mom. I will drive safe, okay? I promise you. I'll call you if something happens, okay? Trust me." Hoping that did the trick, he leaned in to receive the hug from his brunette mother. The hug seemed to last forever and Regina didn't want to let go of her son.

"I do trust you. I love you, too, okay Henry? I love you so much."

"Okay, Mom. I know, I get it. I love you, too. And take care of my little sibling." Henry smirked at his mom.

"You know I will. Now say good bye to your sister." Due to the immense amount of hormones that had overtaken her body recently, Regina was beginning to tear up. Emma noticed, of course, and moved over to put her arm around the brunette's waist. It served as a bit of comfort for as long as Emma can remember. Henry did as his mother said, picked up a squirming Gwen and hugged her tight. The little blonde then planted a big kiss on Henry's cheek.

"Bye bye, Henry. I will miss you and I love you." After one last kiss, she was set on the ground and went scampering over to stand next to her brunette mother.

"Alright, Henry. I'll walk you out to your car." They walked out the front door and headed towards the street where Henry's car sat waiting to go. Henry shoved his duffle bag into the back seat and threw his phone into one of the cup holders near the driver's seat.

"Ma, take care of them, okay? I know this thing with Gramps was just a coincidence but please look out for them. Especially Mom. She may not know it, but she's already starting to act different with that baby."

"I know, Henry. I'm just as nervous as you when it comes to that. But, I will tell you that there are a lot of things to figure out within the next couple of days. That meeting with Rumple happening today is probably what's making her so uneasy right now. I promise you that I will look after them like I always have. Love you, kid!" Emma pulled Henry in for a long, meaningful hug. "Okay, you better hit the road. Looks like rain is coming and we don't want you getting caught in that."

"No, we don't. I'll be fine. Love ya, Ma!"

Emma took a step back so Henry could get into the car. She walked to the front gate and waited for him to start driving away before she walked back up to the front door of the house where her wife and daughter were waiting for her.

"Alright, Gina. Let's get going. Come on, Gwen. You're going to go visit Grandma Snow and Grandpa David today." Emma's demeanor changed drastically on the walk back up to the house. She's determined to figure out it is that Rumplestiltskin has up his sleeve.

XXXXX

Once the two women dropped off Gwen at her grandparents' house, they finally made their way down to the old pawn shop where they knew they would find Rumple. Opening the door, they heard the usual bell ding and continued to the counter in the back of the shop. The man they were looking for finally appeared.

"Hello, dearies. It's so nice to see you." Rumple greeted.

"Yeah, okay. Rumple, save the crap for another day. We have to talk business." Emma was definitely not shy for opening up the topic.

"Right to the point, I see." He was expecting a much more colorful vocabulary to be used by the blonde but it appeared that she has calmed some since the last time they had a discussion. Regina just stood to the side, watching her wife do all of the work.

"Yes, well, I am pretty curious as to why you think YOU need to teach our daughter magic."

"She is extremely gifted with magic. I'm sure you've experienced some of it recently. Your daughter is way too nice not to share her gift with the two of you."

"Okay, yeah, she did use some magic this morning. She made it so Regina could hear her thoughts like I can."

"She did what? That's powerful magic, dearie. Are you sure she did that?" Finally a time for Regina to speak up.

"Yes, I am very certain, Rumple. I could hear her clearly in my head this morning. All she did was simply touch my nose, a wave of light passed around us, and then she was talking to me via her telepathy." Regina answered.

"Well, then your darling daughter is a little more powerful than I presumed her to be. I think it would be wise to start bringing her here for lessons very soon. Power like that should not be in the hands of such a young child. She will need lots of training for her to use them wisely." Rumple still has yet to move but Regina was starting to rock back and forth between her feet and Emma was pacing.

"Why, Rumple, is she so GOD DAMN IMPORTANT to you? What is it that she has that you're not telling us?" Emma was losing her cool.

"Feisty today, I see. I guess this can't be kept any longer. Something dangerous is coming to Storybrooke and I believe that your daughter, with you help will have the strength enough to defeat it. If we don't win the battle, Storybrooke will cease to exist the way it does now. It will change completely and permanently."

"You're sure about this?" Emma asked.

"Absolutely. Something like this, I definitely wouldn't lie about." At that moment, the shrill tone of Emma's phone interrupted their conversation. Emma looked at the caller ID and excused herself to take the call. Turning away from her wife and Rumple, she answers the phone.

"Hello. Sheriff Swan-Mills." Regina was watching her wife's face. The blonde looked rather confused for a moment but then the confusion turned into shock, and then quickly into concern and fear. "Thank you. We'll be right there." She hung up the phone and slowly turned back to Regina. "It's Henry. He's been in a car accident."

XXXXX

Henry could hear his mother. His brunette mother calling for him. He couldn't place where it was coming from though. He forced himself to open his eyes. It was a much harder task than he could have imagined.

Opening his eyes just enough to see his surroundings, he noticed he was still in his car, but this time there were EMTs and police officers and his moms. His moms? Oh god, he thought, why are they here? They shouldn't have to see me like this?

From a distance, Regina noticed that Henry had tried to open his eyes. The officers had held the blonde and brunette back because of the seriousness of the accident. But once the brunette had seen her son waking up, there was no way a couple police officers could stand in her way. She ran up to where the windshield should have been and tried to get as close to Henry as she possibly could without endangering herself from the wreckage.

"Henry! Oh god, Henry! Honey, you're going to be okay. Just hang in there for me, okay? For me and your mom and your sister, okay? You're strong, Henry. We know you are."

"Mom… where is… Ma?"

"She is right here, Henry. She is right behind me."

"Hey, kid."

"How did… you get… here… so quick?"

"Henry, they've been trying to get you out for the forty-five minutes. They called us once they put the info in on your license plate."

"Oh so… I've been out… for a while then… huh?"

"Yeah, kid, you have. Look, I need you to talk to your mother while I help the officers get you out, okay? We need you to keep talking."

"Okay, Ma." Henry promised his Ma that he would keep talking. Regina went to reposition herself so her back was up against the hood of the suv and she could reach her arm into the vehicle to hold her son's hand.

"Henry, tell me about your classes that you're taking."

"Uhmmm… I'm taking a philosophy class that is pretty boring. There is a creative writing class."

"That's wonderful. Are you working on any pieces right now?"

"Yeah. It is about a Knight who is prophesized to save the Evil Queen from herself. They win a battle that had been going on for a very long time." Henry paused a moment to cough and catch his breath. There was a little bit of blood that appeared on his lower lip. "The Knight helped the Evil Queen be seen as no longer Evil but quite the opposite. They grew to… love each other… and eventually got married… I still don't know…. how to… end it…. but it has to…. be… happy…"

Henry's eyes slowly shut and his breathing slowed tremendously. Regina began to panic. She was losing her baby boy. The brunette held out her hand to rest over Henry's heart. With all of her might she was trying to get her magic to heal whatever it could.

"Henry. Come on, Henry. Stay awake. You have to keep your eyes open, baby. Henry. HENRY!"


	6. The Power of Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

Storybrooke ambulance pulled into the hospital drive with full lights and sirens; closely followed by the Sheriff's patrol car. It wasn't very often that those two vehicles were seen together especially with the obnoxious noises and lights making their presence known to the whole town.

Emma, driving the patrol car, was determined to get to the hospital safely. She was also thinking about how her hormonal wife was going to be for the next however many hours. Days. Weeks. Months, even. Henry is her baby boy and always will be. The two of them had gone through so much together and to have only memories left and not be able to make any more would be absolutely devastating. Enough so to even affect the baby that is growing inside of Regina.

The blonde's concern was exponentially rising which was only causing walls to form to contain all of her emotions. Something that both women had successfully destroyed during their relationship. Emma just has to stay strong for her wife and unborn child and her daughter who probably wasn't going to understand what was even happening to her big brother. Oh god, Emma thought to herself, I have to call my parents and tell them what is happening. Who knows how my mother is going to react. How am I really going to tell them? Tell my father over the phone and let him tell Snow? Or tell Snow over the phone and tell her she needs to stay calm? Maybe go over there in person once I know Henry is in good hands? All of these thoughts were running through the blonde's head like rapid fire when they made their last turn into the ambulance bay at the hospital.

The blonde parked the car and glanced over at her wife. Regina was staring forward, tears were slowly rolling down her cheeks, one hand was up to her mouth attempting to hold back the sobs while her other arm was crossed over her abdomen. The last she had seen her baby boy was when he was loaded into the back of the ambulance completely unconscious and fighting for his life.

Emma gently placed her hand over the brunette's, trying to offer some form of comfort. Regina flinched at the sudden contact and looked over to Emma.

"Babe, we have to go inside now. Henry needs us." The blonde watched her wife's reaction closely. She noticed that Regina was slipping further into shock. There was no way that she could allow that to happen. "Come on. We'll go in together. Let me help you out of the car."

Emma released Regina's hand, got out of the car, and walked around to the passenger's door. Opening the door got Regina's attention again but she was still not quite all there. Emma guided her out of the car and led her into the Emergency waiting room. The blonde thought this kind of reaction from her wife was very absurd. She had assumed that Regina would also put up a front and just be concerned about getting Henry better. But that was definitely not the case this time. The extra hormones must be doing something to her usual train of thought. Pregnancy brain, but isn't it kinda early for that yet? She's only just barely pregnant. Emma's inside monologue finally calmed down enough to bring her back to reality.

The only good news they got when walking into the Emergency room was that every doctor and nurse were rushing to the one operating room closest to the entrance. Except the one nurse who walked immediately up to Emma and Regina.

"Madame Mayor and Sheriff Swan, Henry is in good hands. We need to let the doctors work but I will be keeping you updated."

"Thank you, Jolie. We'll be right out here." The blonde nodded her head in thanks and continued to lead her still speechless wife to the sitting area. "Okay, baby, you sit here while I go call my parents. Gwen is gonna have to stay there for a while longer than we had planned."

Regina just nodded her head slightly in acknowledgement. Thinking she would have to take care of that later, Emma walked towards the entrance as to not disturb anyone with her phone call.

Dialing Snow's cell phone number, she was definitely taking a risk telling her mom first, but there really was no other way this could go.

"Hello, Emma."

"Hey, Mom. Is Gwen around you right now?"

"Yes, she is. Do you want to talk to her?"

"Maybe in a moment. I need to tell you something first. Can you maybe move into a different room? I don't want your reaction to upset Gwen."

"Yeah, I can. Emma, is everything alright? Is there something wrong?"

"Uhh… No, mom. Everything is not alright. Henry was in a very bad car accident this morning on his way back to school. And Regina is completely unresponsive to anything I say to her. It's like she's in shock." Emma's voice was noticeably getting full of worry.

"Oh my gosh. Emma, is Henry okay?"

"He's alive. He's just got some broken bones and lots of cuts and bruises. It really was very touch and go at the crash site." Small tears began forming and falling down her cheeks. A little chuckle ended up coming out at the end of her statement.

"Emma! This is serious! Why are you laughing?" Snow demanded.

"I KNOW MOM! OKAY? I KNOW! This is how I'm coping right now, okay? I have to be strong for Henry. And Gwen. And Regina. I don't even know what the hell is going on with her. She was fine at the crash site talking to Henry, keeping him awake, not letting him slip away from us. But after he fell unconscious, Regina just turned into a zombie." Everything she just said came out so quickly it knocked the air right out of her.

"I'm so sorry, honey." Snow thought for a second. Then it hit her. "That doesn't sound like her. She would always try to heal her loved ones. Did she try that with Henry? Is that why she is so out of it?"

"Mom, I'm not sure. I mean, maybe. She was saying something about his heart. Kept repeating 'his heart is okay, his heart is okay…" Emma suddenly went silent in realization.

"Emma. Emma? Are you still there?"

XXXXX

"Henry. Come on, Henry. Stay awake. You have to keep your eyes open, baby. Henry. HENRY!"

"No, no, NO. Henry, I need you here." Regina kept her hand held over her son's heart. Trying to heal him completely was going to be impossible and she knew it. But she also knew that no matter what, she could keep his heart beating. She could protect that from any more damage.

Regina held her hand against Henry's chest. A faint, yet brilliant purple light appeared but faded soon after. Just before the brunette attempted to move her hand and try to heal some cuts, Regina felt magic pulsing through her veins again but it wasn't from her. She had no control of what was happening. Suddenly, a bright turquoise light appeared from her hand and spread into Henry's chest. The boy then took a deep breath and Regina noticed that his breathing was no longer labored. He still wasn't completely healed but at least she knew that he was going to hang on a little bit longer.

Just then, Emma came back to Regina and pulled her very dazed wife away from Henry and the totaled car. They finally found a way to extract him from the wreckage.

Emma had no clue as to what had happened between mother and son, but she thought it awfully interesting that Regina was not being demanding about saving Henry. In fact, she wasn't saying or doing anything at all. The blonde would have to keep an eye on her wife because she knew this was not normal at all.

Only minutes later and the crew had finally pulled Henry from the vehicle, got him onto a stretcher, and packed him into the ambulance. They were off to the hospital with full on lights and sirens and a Sheriff's car right behind them that contained not only the Sheriff, but the Mayor as well.

XXXXX

"Emma. Emma! What's going on?" Snow spoke into her cell phone, hoping her daughter would finally answer.

"Mom, I have to go. I'll call you later, okay?"

"But Emma –"

"No, Mom. I have to go." Emma hung up the call with her mother. She realized that there would never not be a good reason for Regina to be the way she is. The blonde had to find out exactly why her wife was acting the way she was.

Emma walked back into the waiting room towards Regina. The brunette was sitting in the exact same position she was when Emma went to call Snow. The blonde knelt down if front of her wife, placed her left hand on Regina's thigh and moved her right hand towards her wife's chin. Emma brought the brunette's gaze level with her and studied her face for a moment.

"Regina, baby, what happened back there? This isn't like you to be so quiet. Can you tell me what happened? Please, baby, tell me why you're acting like this." Emma implored but her hope for an answer was dwindling. The only change was in the form of watery eyes on the brunette.

"Gina, please." The blonde's plea was full of genuine concern, which finally broke through the brunette's façade.

"Emma. I tried to heal Henry… with my magic but I couldn't control anything. I was getting so worried that I was going to lose him. Right there. Right in front of me. Practically in my hands. But then I felt magic. It wasn't mine but it healed Henry's heart. It was a different color. It wasn't my magic, Emma, it wasn't mine. But his heart is okay, right? His heart is okay." Regina's eyes were solely focused on the blonde. Almost as if she was in shock, but that's just it. She really was. For the first time since Henry was placed in her arms, Regina was in shock. And Emma knew it.

"Regina, honey, listen to me, okay? I need you to focus on me." Emma grabbed both of the brunette's hands with her own. "What happened to Henry is not your fault, okay? You know, as well as I do, that sometimes things are just meant to be. Baby, it's okay that you're magic couldn't heal him. He's a strong kid. I believe he's gonna be fine." The blonde let that sink in a little bit. Then remembered, "Wait, Regina, you said that Henry's heart was okay and that the magic wasn't yours. Honey, if it wasn't yours, whose was it?"

Regina looked to Emma with confusion. She had no idea. Nothing like that has ever happened to her. She has always had control over her magic and it's always been the same color. Nothing would ever change that, even with funneling someone else's magic through her unless…

"Emma," Regina's gaze snapped back up to the blonde's, "Emma, what if it was the baby?"

They both stared at each other for a moment. Then glanced down to Regina's lower abdomen and then back up.

"Gina, is that even possible? I mean, Gwen was never like that. Do you think the baby even knows what it's doing?"

"Maybe it's situational. I was in shock, rendering my magic useless. So, the baby must have recognized the need. It's the only explanation I have right now, Emma."

"We're gonna have to talk to Gold about this." With that, Emma stood up, intending on leaving the hospital but was pulled back by a tug at her wrist.

"Emma, honey, I know we should find out how or why that happened, but right now, I really need to know how Henry is."

The blonde had a smile on her face, noticing that her wife was back. Then she noticed someone entering the waiting room.

"Sheriff. Madame Mayor. Henry is doing well." Both mothers visibly and audibly took a huge deep breath while pulling each other closer. "He is stable, but he still has some serious injuries. He has a broken fibula in his left leg along with a fractured tibia. He also has several fractured bones in his left arm. There is internal bruising around the pelvic area and his chest area. All scrapes were minor and no stitches were needed. The doctor is recommending that Henry should withdraw from school for the remainder of the semester. By the time he will be able to take care of himself again, more than half of the semester will have gone by. He's going to need 24-hour assistance for the first couple weeks and once rehabilitation starts, there will be daily appointments. Do you have any questions?"

Regina had listened intently and held onto every single word that the nurse had said. Emma, on the other hand, was like a deer in the headlights; totally stunned.

"Thank you, Nurse Jolie. I don't have any questions other than when can we see our son?" Regina answered with her very composed style.

"Oh yes, of course. You should be able to see him within the hour. He is being transferred to a new room and we are making sure that it is prepared for you and your wife to stay there, as well."

"Thank you very much." Regina was very grateful for the care and consideration that they are being given. The nurse walked away and finally, Emma turned to her wife.

"He's okay, Regina. Our baby boy is okay." The blonde engulfed her wife in a big bear hug.

"Yes, he is." Regina answered, pulling back a little. She glanced down at soft, pink lips and couldn't resist any longer. Her hands moved up to get tangled in a mess of curly blonde hair while she pulled herself closer to feel Emma's lips on hers. The kiss didn't last long, but it woke them up from their stupor moments ago.

Suddenly, Regina pulled back. "Emma, we need to get Gwen. If we don't soon, she's going to sense something is off. You know that she can't go very long without channeling your feelings."

"Yes, baby, you're right. Henry will be asleep for a while yet so let's hurry and we'll bring her and probably my parents back with us." The two women left the waiting room hand in hand.

XXXXX

It didn't take very long for Regina and Emma to travel the short distance to the Charming's apartment. A few years back, Emma had stopped knocking on their door when she knew they were home. This time was no different except both Emma and Regina were desperate to have their daughter in their arms.

"Mom. Dad. We're here." Emma announced.

"MOMMA. MOMMY." They heard Gwen's cries just seconds before they saw the tiny blonde sprinting towards the front door. Regina quickly knelt down and held out her arms while Emma did the same but accommodated having Regina in her arms too. The tiny blonde was quickly pulled in for big hugs and kisses from her mothers.

"Hi, baby. I missed you so much."

"I missed you, too, Mommy. I wanna go home now. Please?"

Regina looked back to Emma. She needed some encouragement for what she was about to tell Gwen.

"Gwendolyn. I need you to listen to Mommy very carefully, okay?" The brunette received a small head nod in confirmation. The young girl was very intelligent and she knew that when her mother used her full name that she was to pay special attention to absolutely everything. "When Henry left for school this morning, he got into a very bad car accident. Momma and Mommy had to go help him and now he is in the hospital getting better. So, we're going to spend the night with Henry tonight, okay?"

"Okay, Mommy. Can I sleep with Henry?" The four year old definitely didn't understand the severity of his accident.

"No, baby, Henry is not feeling very well and he won't be able to move very much. But you can sleep with me or Momma tonight. What do you think?"

"I want to sleep with you." Gwen leaned back into Regina for another comforting hug.

"Alright, baby. We can make that happen. Let's go see Henry, shall we?"

"Yes, Mommy."

"Please go put your shoes and jacket on. Momma and Mommy will be right there."

Gwen ran over to the front door and did as she was told. Of course, now that she knew how to tie her shoes, she was going to need some time to do so. Emma and Regina stood up to speak with Snow and Charming, who had conveniently walked in behind Gwen a few minutes ago.

"How is Henry really doing, Emma?" Snow asked.

"Well, he's stable and very much alive. He's got a couple broken bones and lots of bruises and scrapes, but he's going to be okay."

"Oh, thank god. Can we come see him tonight?"

"Uh. Actually, can you wait until tomorrow morning? He still wasn't awake when we left and Gwen will be overwhelming enough for him when he does wake up. I will call you if anything changes though." Emma knew Regina wouldn't want many people around until they really knew Henry was going to be okay with more people.

"Okay. Thank you, Emma. When he wakes, tell him we're thinking about him. Try to get some rest tonight, though. Okay? That means you too, Regina."

"Yes, Snow. We will. Thank you for watching Gwen for us."

After quick hugs and good byes, the Swan-Mills family were on their way back to the hospital.

XXXXX

A few hours later found the Swan-Mills family in Henry's recovery room. Henry was still asleep, Emma was passed out on the spare bed and Regina sat in the reclining chair with Gwen snuggled comfortably in her arms, under a fuzzy blanket that Emma had run home to get.

"Mommy?" Gwen asked quietly. She knew she was supposed to be asleep right now.

"Yes, baby?" Regina replied, knowing that with such a traumatic day, her daughter should be exhausted but she also knew that Gwen sensed all of the emotions from her and her other mother and was worried about her big brother, especially after she had seen him with the many tubes and wires stuck to his body.

"Is Henry going to be okay, Mommy?"

If Regina's heart could melt any more, that just did it.

"Yes, Gwennie, Henry is going to be okay."

"Then why are we staying in the hospital still? And why does he have all of those tube things stuck to him?"

"Well, all of the tube things are to help him get better much quicker and that's why we have to stay here for a few days. The doctors also need to make sure he is going to get better."

"But Henry hasn't woken up yet."

"He will, baby. I promise he will. Let's go to sleep right now and then maybe when we wake up, Henry will be awake too."

"Okay, Mommy."

"Night, Gwennie." Regina snuggled her daughter even closer than before. Her hand stroking her daughter's blonde curls.

"Mommy?" Gwen asked without picking her head up.

"Yes, Gwennie?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too, baby. I love you so much."


	7. Hospital Rooms and Villains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

Emma awoke rather early the next morning. The sun was just rising and starting to shine through the window in the hospital room. Allowing herself a moment to let her eyes adjust, she sat up and glanced around the room. Henry was still out and looks as though he hadn't moved all night. Gwen was also still asleep lying on top of Regina. They looked so comfortable together that the blonde was afraid any kind of movement could disturb their peace. However, the brunette's eyes opened slowly and found their home within the blonde's.

"Good morning, honey. I thought that you would be sleeping a little bit longer." Emma mentioned while showing only a little bit of concern. Her wife being an early riser was nothing new to her.

"I think, I might have," Regina put her hand protectively over the miniature blonde's ear that was facing the ceiling. "Had it not been for your daughter and unborn child moving in on my bladder. Would you mind coming over here to pick up Gwen?"

"Not at all, babe." The blonde stood up from the bed and walked over to the chair in which Regina and Gwen had been sleeping. Before picking up the young girl, Emma planted her hands on both sides of Regina's head and leaned down to capture a quick kiss. Leaving Regina longing for more, Emma scooped up her mini me and placed her on the bed that she had just vacated. The brunette watched on in admiration and then watched Emma as she turned around back to her.

"Honey, I thought you needed to use the bathroom." Emma questioned her with a smirk playing on her lips.

"Oh, right. Yes. I do. I'm headed there now." Regina answered, being pulled out of her thoughts, she stood from the chair to go towards the bathroom.

"Uh huh. You were mesmerized, weren't you?" The brunette paused in her tracks to slowly turn and look at her blonde wife. Emma, realizing she had caught Regina, walked over to her. "Come on, you can admit it."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Being prideful was a normal occurrence for the brunette but it never went unnoticed by the blonde. In fact, Emma often called Regina out on it just so she would get used to being more honest. But this time, the brunette just turned away from the blonde, walked into the bathroom and shut the door, ignoring her wife's demand for 'coming clean'.

"Ma…" The blonde quickly shifted to be beside her son's bed. Henry was slowly moving around but his eyes weren't open yet. Emma thought for a moment that maybe she had heard things, but then he finally opened his eyes and focused in on his blonde mother.

"Henry, I'm so glad you're okay, kid. You had us worried there for a little while." Emma said as she walked closer to Henry's bed.

"I'm sorry, Ma. I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened. One moment, I was driving along and the next thing I know I was sideways. I'm sorry, Ma. I'm sor-"

"Stop that. It wasn't your fault, okay? It was raining and it made the roads slick. Things happen, but right now, your mom and I are just happy that you're still with us."

"Thank you, Ma." Henry tried to sit up a little more in bed, but was stopped by the realization that he couldn't move half of his body. "Ugh. Remind me never to do that again."

"I will be reminding you every time you have car keys in your hands." Emma said to Henry jokingly, which coaxed a small smirk from her son.

"Ma, where's mom? And Gwen?"

"Gwen is sleeping over here in the spare bed and your mom just got up to go to the bathroom. We stayed here with you last night, Henry. We were all quite scared, kid. Your mom, her walls went back up after we got you out of the car. I didn't know what had happened. Henry, the baby helped to heal you yesterday." The blonde allowed that to sink in. Her son was awestruck.

"So, what you're saying is that I could've died? But the baby healed its big brother?"

"Yes, that's what I'm saying, kid. Now, when your mom comes back out here, be prepared for any kind of emotion. I have no idea what is going to happen." Emma knew that Regina was a little angry about the whole ordeal because she wasn't able to do anything to help Henry.

"Okay. Is she okay, though? Is the baby okay? I'm sure me pulling a stunt like that didn't help her stress."

"She'll be fine, kid. We still have you. And the baby will be fine too. I promise." Emma had just finished the last word when Regina emerged from the bathroom.

Noticing that Henry was awake, she practically ran to his side. As she bent down to give him a hug, a horrible wave of nausea hit her. Leaving behind a confused Henry and Emma, she returned back to the bathroom and shut the door quickly. A couple seconds went by and they could hear the brunette retching. Emma internally wondered what there was that she could possibly be dispelling from her stomach. She knew Gwen had eaten dinner last night with her parents, but as far as her and Regina go, they hadn't eaten since breakfast yesterday. Her wife was going to be in a little pain from not having anything to get rid of.

"Well, kid, welcome to the life of morning sickness. She may not be able to get very close to you right now. But I do know someone who will want to when she wakes up. However, right now, I'm going to go help your mother and then I'm going to get the nurse to let her know you are awake."

"Okay, Ma. I love you!" Henry responded.

"I love you, too, kid." Emma ruffled his hair a little bit before walking towards the bathroom. Out of respect, she knocked quietly before she opened the door and snuck in, closing the door behind her.

"Honey, are you doing okay?" The blonde walked over to where the brunette was hunched over the toilet, taking hold of her hair and rubbing small circles on her back.

"Yeah, I'm okay." The brunette just sat there for a moment. "No, actually I'm not. I can't get close to Henry without getting nauseous. And when I get nauseous, I run to the bathroom and start throwing up and then it hurts to even move." Tears had started falling down the brunette's face. "I don't understand how I can still be sick. There is nothing in my stomach. Emma, I don't know how I'm going to handle this. How can I help our son if I can't even get close to him?"

"Baby, it'll get better. I promise. Even if it doesn't go away altogether, it won't be as bad later on. We'll get through this. As for Henry, just do what you can. If you can't get close to him, then don't. While we're in the hospital with him, there is going to be a lot of unpleasant smells. But once we get home, he'll be getting back to the healthy kid he was and you'll be able to cook for him, clean his clothes, make his bed, pick up after him. All of those things that you secretly miss, even though you have me around. Baby, it's only going to get better from here." The brunette looked into the blonde's gaze.

"Emma?"

"Yes, baby?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too." Emma leaned in closer to her wife, expecting to kiss her passionately until Regina turned her head away slightly and brought her hand up to Emma's cheek to push her away gently. The blonde was a little offended.

"Emma, sweetie, I really want to kiss you, but I have vomit breath. I'm pretty sure that's the last thing you want to taste."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Well, I told Henry that I would check on you and then go get the nurse. While I'm out there, I can see if they have a toothbrush and some toothpaste. That may have been something that I forgot to grab." The brunette just smirked at her forgetful wife. It wasn't as if she wasn't used to making sure Emma always remembered everything but, in this case, she was just as much to blame. She is pretty sure there were bigger things on their minds than remembering a toothbrush.

"Alright. I'm just going to sit in here until you come back, okay? Probably splash some water on my face and straighten up a bit."

"Okay, I'll be right back." The blonde went to leave but then turned back to the brunette. "Oh, uh... we're also going to have to tell Henry about the whole smell thing. We can't have him thinking that you don't want to be close to him."

Emma walked out the door, reclosing it as she went. Regina was left with a smile on her face, but then quickly remembered why she was in the bathroom on the floor. Her hand went to gently caress her abdomen while she silently wished for an easier time on the morning sickness for the rest of the day. She just needed to get through today.

XXXXX

Twenty minutes later, Emma had already returned with the nurse and a couple toothbrushes, which she had taken straight to the bathroom. She also had asked the nurse if it was possible to get breakfast for the four of them. Henry had been checked over and he was in the all clear from waking up. Gwen had even started to arouse from her deep slumber on the spare bed. After getting refreshed, Regina had made it back to the reclining chair that she had been in prior to her bathroom interlude. Talking to Henry was something that she wanted to get done quickly so Henry spends less time thinking about him being the cause of his mother getting sick. Once Gwen had completely woken up, she crawled into Emma's lap at the end of the spare bed and cuddled with her blonde mother.

"Good morning, little bug. How are you doing today?" Emma noticed that it was quite early for all of the Swan-Mills family to be up and moving around, but with a day like yesterday, they were all going to be tired and quite possibly a little cranky.

"I'm good, Momma. Can we go home today?" Gwen turned her face into her blonde mother's neck. Emma always loved when her little girl was in such a cuddly mood.

"We could go home for a little bit if you want to, but Henry is going to have to stay here for a couple days. But you know what, your big brother is strong and brave and I bet he would be okay by himself if he had to be." Emma responded with such gentleness that made the smaller blonde want to curl into her even more.

"Okay, Momma. Can I hug Henry now?" The girl's innocence was not lost on Emma. Her heart was so full of love from this little girl that sometimes even she couldn't comprehend why her heart hadn't exploded.

"Of course, bug. But you're going to have to ask Henry first." At this the small blonde looked at her mother with wide eyes.

"He's awake?"

"Yes, well, he woke up this morning about an hour ago. Mommy is awake too." Noticing that she was inadvertently being summoned, Regina picked herself up out of the chair and walked over to her favorite blondes.

"Hi, baby."

"Mommy!" Gwen practically leapt from Emma's arms into Regina's. She was so excited to see them every single day that the brunette secretly hoped that she would never lose that.

"Good morning, sweetheart. Did you sleep well?" The brunette asked.

"Yes, Mommy. I did. You were very comfy." Both the blonde and brunette giggled at this and Emma even went to lightly tickle the small blonde, making her giggle as well, which woke up Henry.

"Hey, you guys are having too much fun over there." Henry managed to get out. Hearing his voice made Gwen immediately turn towards her big brother in her mother's arms and started wiggling to get closer to Henry.

"Henry. Henry. You're awake." Regina had set the small blonde on the floor so she could run and join Henry on his bed.

"Careful, Gwennie. I'm a little broken. You can sit on this side if you want though." Henry patted the space next to him on the side of his body that wasn't broken. She proudly took the space and quickly hugged her big brother like he had been gone for a very long time.

"I missed you, Henry. I think you need to stay home more often." Everybody except Gwen laughed at her forwardness.

"Well, I think you will get to see me a lot more for a quite a while. I'm probably not going back to school this semester." Henry looked slightly sad at this but he was also happy that he would be able to spend some more time with his family.

"Uh, yeah, Henry. We wanted to talk to you about that and a couple of other things." Emma started. "First, though, your mom and I want you to know that it's not you that is making her nauseous. It's the smells of the hospital. They just tend to get stronger the closer she gets to you."

"Henry, I want to hug you so desperately right now, but it hurts so much when I'm sick. I'm really sorry, Henry. Just plan on when we get home, that you are going to be smothered with hugs and kisses until I can't do that anymore." Regina felt so bad that she couldn't get very close to Henry's bed, let alone Henry himself.

"It's okay, Mom. Really. It's fine. I don't want to see you sick. So if that means that you have to stay over there, I'm okay with that." Henry was always so understanding with his mothers. He knew that they loved him to no end and nothing would change that.

"Alright. So now that that's settled, we do need to talk about your schooling. Your Mom and I are thinking that you should take this semester off. I know it's not ideal, but you won't be able to go back for a few weeks and by then, you'll have missed so much work that you won't be able to catch up to have decent grades." Emma was not excited about Henry having to miss school, but his health is so much more important that having to worry about him catching up with schoolwork just to graduate at his projected graduation time.

"I think I agree with you, Ma. I just don't want to sit around here and do nothing though. So I'm gonna need something to do."

"We can work something out, kid. But in the meantime, we'll call up your school and see what steps we have to go through to get you un-enrolled."

"Thanks, Ma." Henry was genuinely thankful for all that they were doing for him, but there was something he also needed to take care of. "Um… hey. So, I never got a chance to tell you this weekend because I didn't want to take away from your good news, but do you think we could call my girlfriend and let her know what is happening."

Both Emma and Regina were completely taken aback by this small surprise. His blonde mother was really happy and kind of expecting something like this to happen soon and his brunette mother was extremely shocked. In fact, so shocked that she had to sit down.

"Henry, why didn't you tell us sooner? We would've called her yesterday, had we known that she existed. I'm sure she's worried sick about you. Your phone was destroyed in the crash, which means that all texts and phone calls will go immediately to the answering service." Taking a moment to breathe, Regina calmed herself down, now getting excited about Henry having a girlfriend. "Henry, what's her name? And how can we reach her?"

"Her name is Kyra. And I think all I need is a laptop to get on Facebook. Her number is in my messages. I could call her after I find it."

"How long have you been together, kid?"

"About a month. I wanted to tell you both in person. She's pretty amazing." Henry, probably without knowing it, had gotten a huge smile on his face.

"So, you started dating her when the semester began?" Regina asked.

"Yes, we went 'official' at the start of the semester but I knew her last year. We have been hanging out since January."

Emma and Regina looked at each other knowingly. Henry loves deeply but it wasn't so easy for him to get so attached. They knew that he was basically head over heels for this girl.

"Alright, kid. I'm happy for you. You know, if she wants to, she can come visit you. I don't know about the whole meeting the family thing yet, but we won't bite and you know Gwen would be all over her within the first two minutes of meeting her." Emma glanced at Regina to non-verbally agree that the invitation was okay. They definitely have more than enough rooms in the house. Without any more hesitation, Emma walked towards that door, getting ready to leave. "I guess I can run home real quick and grab a few things. We'll make sure she finds out, okay kid? Just get some rest. Gwen, will you keep Henry company for a few minutes? Mommy and I are going to talk in the hallway."

Regina was confused as to why Emma needed to talk to her but she followed the blonde out anyway.

"Emma, what's going on?" The brunette had just finished closing the door.

"We have to talk to Rumple. We need to stop things like this from happening and if the only way to do that is to allow him to teach Gwen about magic, then that's what we need to do."

"Emma, I agree with you, but there is one more thing I need to tell you."

"Regina, what is it?" The blonde always got very nervous when her wife said something like that.

"Well, the accident with Henry. That's exactly what I dreamed. It was like a premonition or something. And if things like this keep happening the same way, then your mother is the next one to be attacked. And you're there with her. I can't have this happening either, Emma. We need some stipulations though, for him to follow and agree to. We can't have him doing just whatever he wants to do with our daughter. I won't allow that to happen. I know what he's like and I just can't…" The brunette drifted off and tears were starting to form in her eyes thinking about how she was treated all those years ago. Emma took her thumbs and wiped away the tears and then pulled Regina into a tender kiss. The brunette latched onto the blonde's hips like it was a lifeline.

"I won't let anything happen. I promise." Emma said when she had pulled away. Regina had brought the blonde even closer to her than before. "So, these stipulations, what are you thinking?"

"I think that one of us always needs to be there with her. I don't trust him enough to leave her alone with him." Regina leaned her head into the crook of Emma's neck.

"That's fair. And no dark magic. I've seen what it's done to you and I can't fathom watching Gwen go through that. Does that sound good to you?" The blonde pulled back, allowing Regina to bring her head up and look at Emma.

"Yes, that sounds very reasonable." Regina leaned up into another chaste kiss from her wife. "I love you, Emma. And please be careful when you go to see him."

"Of course, Gina. I love you too. I'll be back soon." After one more chaste kiss, the blonde left Regina standing outside their son's hospital room door, staring after her.

XXXXX

Emma walked into Rumple's shop, knowing that this conversation could go one of two ways. The first being that Rumple works with Emma and Regina's stipulations. The second being he gets quite angry because he can't have what he wants. That is exactly why Emma came alone. Her daughter and unborn child are way too valuable to bring into this and Henry has already suffered enough for this supposed deal. The melodious ring of the bell informed the imp of someone's entrance into his shop.

"Well, hello, dearie. It sure is nice to see you."

"Cut the crap, Rumple. You've got some explaining to do." Her anger was rather unmistakable.

"Oh? And what do I owe you an explanation for?"

"Henry. MY SON. Was in a car accident. You said that things were going to start happening to our family. I want to know why!"

"That should be obvious. I want to teach your daughter magic and this is the only way I could get your attention. I see that it is working." The imp had a conspicuous smirk on his lips.

"I don't believe you. There has to be more than that going on. You can't honestly tell me that you would rather have YOUR GRANDSON get critically injured just so you can play your little game of teaching Gwen. Now, I'll give you one more chance. Why are these things happening?"

Rumple stared at the blonde. He knew that she could tell if he was lying and he couldn't risk being under the wrath of Maleficent and her 'significant other'. That just wasn't going to work. While he debated how to go about this, Emma was watching his facial movements very closely.

"Okay. Here is what I'm going to tell you, dearie. I really need to teach Gwen the basics of magic. I know that she is extremely intelligent for her age, but that just isn't going to be enough with her power. I'm sure that she has already proven a great deal of control over her magic, however, as she gets older, it may start to become more complicated. As for why your son was hurt, I have no control over that. I just know that if I don't do what I need to do, things are going to be happening and they might not always come out with people being alive." He watched the blonde as she allowed all of his words to soak in. Realization started to play on the blonde's features.

"You really don't have control over this, do you? You're not the mastermind here. Who the hell is controlling you, Rumple?"

"Now, dearie, why don't you run along to your family and take care of them. They're going to need you." Rumple tried to deflect any other questions and answers. He didn't want to risk more than what he should.

"I'm going to find out, Rumple. This can't happen. Do they even know who they're dealing with?"

"Yes, dearie, they do. Now I highly suggest you run along." His calm demeanor fading away into agitation.

"Fine. Since you won't tell me anything, Regina and I have decided to allow Gwen one hour of supervised lessons with you. It has to be me or Regina. No one else is allowed to supervise. Also, no dark magic. We'll know if you do. Sound like a deal?"

"Yes. Thank you."

"We'll bring her for the first lesson on Friday evening." Not even waiting for a response, Emma left the shop to hurry back to her family. The door was once again, slammed shut with the door bell ringing wildly.

Suddenly, a not so subtle cloud of smoke appeared in the corner. As it dissipated into the air, it revealed a relatively tall blonde who looked as though she had been to hell and back.

"Well, Rumple, I see our plan is starting to pan out. They don't know who is controlling the events in their lives, but you are having a hard time trying to hide it." Maleficent informed Rumple, almost acting as if he had made a huge mistake.

"I'm sure you know of the Savior's ability to tell if someone is lying or not. There are only so many ways to say things without having her discover the whole truth."

"You're going to have to do better than that, Rumple. Too much is depending on you teaching that girl."

"Yes, but do you realize that her parents are always going to be in the same room? You really don't believe this is going to work, do you? They'll figure it all out before you can even say hello to the child." He was getting very irritated with this plan that he has to follow. Nobody in their right minds would be able to go up against those two women and not come back with their tails between their legs.

"I don't believe that. I think that Regina will do absolutely anything to keep that daughter of hers safe. Even if it means that she has to let go one of her loved ones."

"You just don't get it! It's never going to work. Especially, if you keep hurting MY family! Henry never did anything to you and now –"

"YOU'RE RIGHT! HE NEVER DID! But you know what? His mother did. And the only way I'm going to get to her, is by playing with her weakness. So say all you want, Rumple, but this plan is going to work." Maleficent was absolutely livid. She can't believe the nerve of the imp. Not intending to stay any longer, she poofed herself out of the shop, leaving a perturbed Rumple in her wake.


	8. Little Grey Swan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

When Emma left Henry's room in the hospital that morning, Regina forced a hopeful smile back on her face. She had to keep up some kind of happy atmosphere for all of her kids; Henry, Gwen, and the little one growing inside her. The impending magic lessons for Gwen are not something that the brunette ever thought she would have to deal with, especially when it came to the one and only Rumplestiltskin as the teacher. Regina wants her children to have the childhood that they deserve. A childhood that Regina never got to experience.

Walking back into the hospital room, the brunette lovingly looked on while Henry and Gwen played a rather entertaining game of 'I spy'. She quietly took up her seat in the recliner chair again just to relax, but with everything that has been happening lately, she just can't keep her mind at bay. She wonders about the lessons for Gwen. As much as she wants to control them, she knows that she is just going to have to be a spectator on the sidelines. But if this is the only way that they can start getting a handle on these premonitions and prevent them from happening, that's how it's going to be. Regina, nor Emma, can lose anybody else. They've both been through hell in their lifetimes, and it's about time that they get their happiness. Although, something that Regina can find out now is how this supposed girlfriend of Henry's actually won his heart.

"So, Henry," Regina starts, claiming the attention of her two children. "This girlfriend of yours, Kyra. How did you meet?" Henry's face brightened considerably when Kyra's name was mentioned.

"We met in one of our English classes last year. We were put in the same group for a project at the beginning of the semester and then we just kept hanging out. I guess I had taken her out on quite a few dates before I really had the courage to ask her to be my girlfriend, but I really wanted to be sure. I don't know what exactly I was waiting for, but whatever it was, I'm so glad she said yes. Otherwise, that would have been really awkward." Henry chuckled and so did Regina. Gwen remained caught up in her own pretend world.

"Yes, I would assume so." Regina replied. "Henry, I would like to think that I know you very well. A relationship with any girl is bound to be quite serious. Am I right to assume that Kyra will probably want to come see you?"

"Mom, you do know me well. That's for sure. Kyra will most likely freak out when I tell her what happened and hop on the first bus towards Storybrooke. Ya know, the way she worries at times, kinda reminds me a lot of you." Regina didn't know if she should take that as a compliment or not.

"She is most welcome to stay with us, but we're going to have to be very careful if she meets anyone else. I mean, we might have a hard enough time keeping Gwen's magic under control while she's here. Let alone, mine has been acting weird lately. Henry, if she happens to see something, you're going to have to be prepared to tell her the truth. This isn't something you can sugarcoat."

"It'll be okay, mom. I promise. I would honestly prefer to tell her. Maybe not everything, but enough of the basics."

"Do you think she'll believe you? I mean, you remember how long it took for Emma to believe."

"Yes, mom. I do think she'll believe me. I think she'll need some time to think about it on her own, but I think she'll be a believer. And I know she can keep secrets."

"That's great, Henry. I really hope Kyra is a believer. Will you tell me more about her?"

"Of course! Well, she's a brunette and her eyes are this gorgeous crystal blue. Her smile, oh mom, her smile is like looking into heaven. And…"

XXXXX

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Emma had finally made her way to the mansion. She slowly pulled the yellow bug into driveway and put it into park. As she made her way up the path to the door, she was pulling out her house key and getting it ready. Just before sliding it into position to unlock, the blonde stopped. She suddenly realized that when she steps into their home, it would feel different. Not necessarily in a bad way, but just different. It always did after something drastic happened. Like when Emma had gotten herself landed in the hospital when she was pregnant with Gwen. Or that time when both Regina and Gwen had gotten really sick and were hospitalized for a few days to monitor their health. Or when Henry broke his arm. There was also that time when Regina and Emma had returned from their honeymoon. All of it, good or bad, made it feel different. The only thing was, this time, Emma was walking in by herself.

Without any more thought, Emma forced the key in and unlocked the door. Turning the knob, pushing open the door, and then slowly walking into the foyer had the blonde holding her breath. She didn't realize she had been doing that until she audibly sighed when she noticed that all furniture and belongings had remained in the same places. Especially some of Gwen's toys that littered the living room.

Finally calming herself, the blonde remembered what she had come for. Quickly, she gathered her personal laptop, the missing toiletries, and a few of Gwen's toys and some snacks. She even went as far as choosing a couple new outfits for herself, Regina and Gwen. Not knowing how long they were really going to be staying at the hospital, she knew that it would get rather tiring to continuously return to the mansion.

Emma didn't want to stay away much longer than she had to, so without anything more, she loaded up the bug and returned to the hospital where she had inadvertently walked into a very glorious sight.

Henry, despite the pain of broken bones and bruises, was beaming brightly off into the atmosphere. Gwen was softly giggling at his reaction to whatever it may have been and she looked rather tempted to poke her finger into Henry's cheek. Regina was smiling widely and almost looked to have tears in her eyes. Apparently, Emma had missed a big moment.

"Hey Swan-Mills clan, everything okay?" Emma asked.

"MOMMA! You're back! Yay! Did you bring me my toys?" Gwen replied, only truly curious about things to keep her mind occupied.

"Yes, baby. I sure did. I also brought you a couple of your snacks in case you get hungry." Emma walked towards the miniature blonde to hand her a coloring book and crayons. Something that her big brother might be able to help with for right now. "Henry, I thought maybe you would like to color with Gwen. It seems like she's pretty attached to you."

"Yeah, Ma. She is. And I would love to color with my little sister. What do you say, Gwennie?" Henry agreed with Emma and then looked to Gwen to get an answer from her.

"Yes. Henry! You can help me color something for all of the nurses that come in to take care of you. They are so nice." Gwen responded.

"They certainly are Gwennie." Both Henry and Gwen got resituated on the bed to color pictures for the nurses.

"So, sweetie," Emma glanced toward her wife. "How are you feeling now that you've gotten a little rest?"

"I'll feel much better when you're holding me." The brunette looked up, finding mild confusion in green eyes. Then she suddenly leaned forward to grasp one of her wife's hands, pulling her down and quickly switching positions with her. Regina was now sitting sideways on Emma's lap with her head leaning on the blonde's shoulder.

Looking down into warm chocolate eyes, the blonde knew that in the short amount of time that she was away from her wife, some rather intense emotions had struck. Regina was not always one for snuggling when not in their own bed. Her only other exceptions were when Emma was pregnant with Gwen and she needed human contact all of the time.

"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" Emma asked. She kind of already knew the answer but she really loved making Regina squirm a little, having her to admit some intensely romantic emotions.

"I just wanted you to hold me and be close to me." Regina paused for a moment, then murmured, "and the baby wanted you close too."

Emma's eyes got really big. "Oh, really? The baby wanted me close, huh? These hormonal influxes are really doing a number on you. Not that I'm complaining or anything. It's just that you always seem to keep yourself rather under control when it comes to dispelling your emotions."

"Well, look at you with your big words." Regina lifted her head off of Emma's shoulder to peer into her wife's eyes. "Seems to me that you really don't know how to handle my emotions."

"Oh, honey. That's not it. That's not it at all. You do remember what you were like while on your period, right? Because I do believe there were some rather emotional times. I can recall some memories of a beautiful, whining brunette when she got home from work one day."

"Come on. Seriously? You can't blame me. I had a perfectly good reason to be crying that one time."

"Just the one time, huh?" Emma chuckled.

XXXXX

*Flashback*

The brunette walked into her home after a very agonizing work day. She was in desperate need of a glass of wine and a hot bubble bath. It would be even better if her wife could join her, but with their daughter, Gwen, being only 4 months old, the blonde had a tendency to be constantly readily available for their baby. Regina doesn't necessarily feel neglected but the attention she used to get from her wife has certainly diminished since they brought the little one home. However, it was 'that time of the month' and the brunette was quite desperate for at least some attention.

Regina removed her coat and snow boots and placed her purse on the small table in the foyer. She brought her hands to her lower back and massaged gently for a moment before bringing her right hand to her front, placing it on her lower abdomen. As much as the brunette is thankful for the curse being broken, she is definitely missing those years of not having to deal with her period every month. Back in the Enchanted Forest, before all of the medical advances that they have now in Storybrooke, that time of the month was always so painful.

Groaning softly as she went, she walked slowly into the kitchen. To her surprise, the brunette found her beautiful blonde wife attempting to cook dinner with a very giggly baby bouncing on her hip. Emma has only gone back to work part time since she gave birth to Gwen, but even at that, she's only been doing desk work. So finding dinner made and in the dining room was not rare, but finding that the baby was in Emma's arms while she was cooking was an odd occurrence. Seeing a happy Emma and a happy Gwen always made Regina's day just a little bit better.

"Hi honey. How was your day at work?" Emma asked politely as she turned more towards the brunette. She noticed the brunette's hand that was gently rubbing her lower abdomen.

"Ugh. It was a day. I was in too much pain to even think about concentrating on getting work done." Regina said as she slumped down onto a bar stool across from where Emma was cooking.

"Oh honey." Emma sighed as she walked around the counter to Regina. "Why didn't you come home?"

"I thought I could be more productive at the office. I knew if I came home, I'd be distracted by a certain baby that demands constant attention." Regina leaned over to place a gentle kiss on her daughter's forehead, then glanced up to Emma. "I really just want wine and a hot bath."

"I think that can be arranged. Let me just turn the stove off and get Henry to watch Gwen for a little while and then I will be up to join you in a bath. I'll even bring some wine with me."

"Really, Emma?" Regina asked with her eyes starting to tear up. "You'll really do that for me?"

"Yes, baby. Of course." Now noticing the tears forming in the brunette's eyes. "Honey, what's wrong? What are these tears for?" Emma took her thumb and wiped away a few tears from Regina's face.

"I'm… I'm just so tired. And… and I hurt so… so much. I've waited for this all day." Emma smirked at Regina's admission. Usually, the brunette is so regal that this kind of action would not be acceptable. Every now and then, however, all emotions get rather pent up and need to be released. And when that happens, Emma would bend over backwards to make sure her wife gets what she needs.

"Okay, baby. I will be up very soon with the promised wine and then we can sit and talk in a very relaxing bathtub. I love you." The blonde leaned in and claimed the brunette's plump lips with her own. She tried to convey all of the love that she had for her wife in that one passionate kiss before they separated.

"I love you too, Emma. And you to, pumpkin." The brunette placed another soft kiss on her daughter's head and then left the kitchen with a small smile on her face, hoping that the evening would only get better from that point on.

*End flashback*

XXXXX

"Okay, so everything is just hormone related." Regina said hoping that the comeback was at least true.

"Yes, you're right. All of your extremely emotional moments have been related to hormones. However, I don't recall hormones being a problem at our wedding. Or when Henry went off to college. Or when I was giving birth to Gwen. Or-" Emma was cut off.

"Fine. You got me. I tend to be a rather emotional person. But now, I would like to do something else with those emotions." Regina replied.

"Oh yeah? And what, may I ask, do you have in mind?" the blonde asked curiously.

"I think you know." Regina smirked and then brought her hand up to Emma's face, cupping her cheek. She leaned in to kiss the soft pink lips that she has been wanting to kiss for the last hour. The two women almost forgot that there were two others in the same room as them, but a soft giggle brought them back to reality.

"Mommy. Momma. You're not supposed to do that in front of me." Gwen insisted as she quickly covered her eyes. Her brother had lost her attention with the coloring book and had failed in bringing her back.

"Oh. Is that so, Gwennie?" Emma asked as she lifted Regina up, earning a quiet squeak from her wife, and placed her back on the chair after the blonde had stood up. She then turned and walked towards the children on the hospital bed. "So… what if I did this?" Emma dove in beside her daughter and began placing kisses all over her face and hair while also attempting to tickle the four year old.

"Mo-ommm-my. Help!"

Regina so desperately wanted to help the young child but she knew getting close to the bed would be a bad idea and it would probably make Henry feel even worse about his condition. Without having to be prompted, Henry saw his mother's internal fight and decided to help this situation by carefully putting his arm around Gwen and pushing his blonde mother away. It worked, but only for a minute.

"Hey, Ma!" Henry exclaimed. This definitely got Emma's attention.

"Yeah, kid. What's up?" Emma replied, picking Gwen up and settling her on her hip.

"You did bring the laptop, right? I really should call Kyra and let her know what is going on. She's probably freaking out by now since I never showed up back at school yesterday." Henry smiled but then his expression slowly turned into one of worry.

"Yes, I did. Whose phone would you rather use to call?"

"Can I use yours, Ma? No offense, Mom, but if she tries to call back or something, I would rather have Ma answer it. I kinda told her a little bit about Ma's past as a foster kid and since she was one as well, I think she thought that there would be a better connection." Henry looked at his mother's looking at him and then to each other. Regina looked like she was about to cry but also like she was trying to hold it together because she understood the circumstance. Emma was just baffled, but she turned to grab the laptop bag and bring it back to Henry with her phone, all the while Gwen remained on her hip.

"Ugh, sure, kid. Here's my phone. I think your mom was going to call your school anyway and get all of that taken care of." Emma was always pretty good at distracting the brunette from thinking too much on subjects that just weren't great.

"Thanks, Ma. I'm just gonna call her now." Henry said as he turned his attention to using the one working side of his body to use both the laptop and the cell phone.

"Alright. Well, Gwennie, what do ya say we go down to that gift shop that you spied on the way in last night?" Emma bounced the young blonde on her hip gently while the girl nodded her head quite enthusiastically. "Okay, kiddo, we'll go right after we kiss your Mommy."

"Momma!" Gwen replied, once again wiggling in her mother's arms. Emma glanced at Regina and winked.

"What? You don't think we should? What if she gets sad because we left her with Henry all by herself? Wouldn't you like to know that you left your mother with a smile on her face?" Emma was trying desperately to get a rise out of her miniature. She knew that if she said that right things, her beautiful daughter would agree to anything. So, of course, Gwen was going to agree with her blonde mother.

"Yes, Momma. Mommy should always have a smile on her face. She has so much to be happy about."

"Very much so. You are totally right, Gwennie. So let's give her those kisses before we leave, huh?" With no more prompting necessary, Emma and Gwen walked the short distance to Regina and each took their turns giving the brunette mother kisses.

"You two be careful now, okay?" The brunette had to be sure that her family was going to come back.

XXXXX

Both of the blondes made it to the gift shop rather quickly. Once out of the hospital room, Gwen took it upon herself to make her mother run after her. Emma really didn't want to yell at the child because she's been very well-behaved having been shut up in a small space. She's used to roaming the halls at home and expending energy that way.

Arriving at the gift shop, Gwen immediately ran to all of the baby things. Emma was amused that her daughter was taking the fact of having a sibling so well and that she actually wanted to contribute to welcoming the new baby.

"Momma! Look! It's perfect."

"What's perfect, Gwennie? Can you show me?" Emma asked as she walked around the display to the side where her daughter was residing.

"This, Momma!" As Emma rounded the corner, she noticed the young blonde holding up a pair of baby's socks. They were a simple white but they both contained a grey swan on the ankle. The fact that Gwen found these made the blonde mother start to tear up. She knows that buying something like this, if anybody saw, they could assume the wrong thing and then rumors would be spread around town. Who knows what kind of problem that could start. But on the other hand, she agrees with Gwen. They are perfect. Absolutely perfect.

"Gwen, do you think that Mommy would like these too?"

"Yes. I think she will love them."

"Well, then I guess we better buy them for her, huh?"

And Emma did just that. She bought that pair of socks for the unborn baby. The first pair. Hopefully Regina would love them just as much as they did.


	9. Gold Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

"Mommy, mommy. We brought you something special!" Gwen exclaimed as she walked back into Henry's hospital room. The young blonde and her blonde mother hadn't been gone long once they purchased their gift in the shop. Gwen managed to surprise Regina with her bright exclamation and caused her heart to temporarily race.

"Oh goodness, baby, you scared me." Regina replied.

"Silly mommy. I didn't scare you."

"Yes, darling, you're right. You didn't scare me, you surprised me. Now, what about this something special?" Regina asked curiously. The brunette picked young Gwen up and placed her on her lap, then looked up at Emma, who was standing nearer to the door. She noticed the small white gift bag with a little bit of pastel yellow poking out of the top.

"Honey, I know we had talked about not doing anything like this for a while yet, but Gwen and I both agreed that it was too perfect to ignore it. So, please don't be upset." Emma said hoping to calm Regina from any possible nerves. The blonde walked towards her wife and daughter to kneel beside them. She handed the brunette the small gift bag. Regina looked at the gift and then back to the blonde. Emma noticed hints of unease and worry in chocolate eyes.

"It's okay, Mommy. You don't need to worry, it won't bite. Open it." The young blonde was quite perceptive at her young age. This seemed to pull Regina out of her haze though.

"You're right again, sweetie. I just wasn't expecting anything." Regina replied, once again looking from Gwen back up into her lover's eyes.

"I'm allowed to dote on my wife, am I not? Besides, this was mostly Gwen. She thought that if we didn't get it now, we probably wouldn't find it again." Emma was starting to get nervous with her wife just staring at her. "Uh… if you don't like it though, we can always take it back. I mean, I'm sure there is a return-"

"Emma," Regina said as she placed a hand on the blonde's forearm, "if both of you thought it was perfect, then I'm sure it will be."

While Emma and Gwen looked on, Regina opened the small gift that was so delicately placed in her lap. When she peered inside the bag, her eyes began to water, forming small tears. The blonde noticed, of course, and placed her hands on the brunette's thigh to comfort her. Regina and Emma were both surprised by the sudden sob that sounded from the brunette's throat as she finally saw what was in the bag. Very carefully she pulled the small pair of socks out, noticing the swan figure right away, and then glanced up at Emma again. It didn't take long for the tears to start cascading down her cheeks. The blonde took both hands, placed them on the brunette's cheek and wiped away the tears. Slowly, Emma pulled Regina towards her and planted a rather passionate, yet chaste kiss on her wife's waiting lips. They pulled away when they both hear a small giggle next to them.

"Emma, they're perfect. I… I love them. Gwen, these are wonderful. Thank you so much." Regina hugged the young blonde even closer to her and placed a sweet kiss on the top of her head. More tears fell down the brunette's face. This time, Regina quickly wiped them away with a huge grin on her face.

"I'm glad you liked them, babe. So, I see Henry is back asleep. Didn't think we had been gone that long." Emma started as she went to take a seat on the other bed.

"Yes, it wasn't long after he got off the phone with Kyra. She will be here at the end of the week. Henry finally convinced her that she should wait until he was out of the hospital and then she could stay at the house instead of having to try and fit another body in this small room."

"That's cool. We'll have to make sure we get the guest bedroom all set up. Even though I'm sure she probably won't use it other than to keep her clothes." Emma chuckled. Thinking about young relationships such as her own with Regina. When they started to get serious, it was rare for them to not be in the same bed at night. Especially if one of them was sick or hurt.

"Kyra is going to be calling occasionally to speak with Henry. He put her phone number in your phone so you know who it is when she calls. He also gave her my phone number. Apparently, she wants to be able to reach us no matter what."

"Alright. I can handle that. So, do we know when Henry is able to leave or do we have to play it by ear?"

"We'll be leaving on Thursday afternoon if Henry passes all of his milestones that he has to pass before he can leave. I know he's strong, Emma, but the things he has to do before he can leave are going to be painful for us to have to watch him complete." Regina explained.

"Okay. Well, we can help him get through whatever it is he needs to do."

XXXXX

The week went pretty slowly for the Swan-Mills clan. After a full day of having Gwen in the hospital room with Henry and her mothers, it was quite clear that she had way too much energy to stay there all of the time. Over the few days time that they spent there, Henry was accompanied by his grandparents when his mothers had to go work for a while or go to take care of Gwen. After a while, Henry decided that he did not need supervision all of the time. More likely than not, he would send whoever it was visiting him home for the evening or to at least get some rest. The only person who had a problem with this was his brunette mother, Regina. Even if she couldn't be very near him at the moment, she wouldn't even fathom the possibility of her son being in the hospital by himself. Their compromise resulted in only one of his parents or grandparents staying with him through the night.

However, nothing could prevent the dreaded magic lesson from coming.

That Friday morning was probably one of the most bittersweet mornings that there had been so far for the Swan-Mills family. It was the day that Henry was coming home, but it was also the day of Gwen's first magic lesson.

Regina was beside herself. She didn't know how to cope with allowing her daughter to be taught by the very same instructor that only ever brought out the darkness in Regina. Her stomach had been in knots since the wee hours of the morning. Partly because of the pregnancy, but mostly because of the impending magic lesson that evening. Even with the excitement of having Henry home, it seemed as though nothing could calm her.

Emma, however, was going through the normal motions of the morning. Getting out of bed, showering, drying her hair, making breakfast for the household, and continuing on. She was also very anxious about Gwen's lesson, but that just made her walls go up preventing her from acknowledging anything out of the ordinary.

Regina finally made her way down to the kitchen after a rather aggravating morning of getting herself ready. Emma had volunteered to completely take care of getting Gwen ready this morning so the brunette was able to think and attempt to calm her nerves. Always seeing her wife and daughter with such carefree personalities made her feel like everything was going to be okay. Sometimes, the blonde was just really good at pretending, but Regina was able to spot the difference between the two.

The brunette slowly wondered over to her wife and daughter that were both sitting at the kitchen island. First placing a kiss on the young blonde's forehead, then turning to the older blonde to place a sweet, but chaste kiss on her lips.

"Good morning, sweetie." Emma greeted.

"Morning."

"I know you're probably not up for much this morning, but there are some scrambled eggs on the stove if you'd like. Or I can make you some toast."

"Thank you, dear." Regina responded while heading directly for the coffee pot. "But I think my morning will consist of some coffee."

"You might not like that though. It's decaf." Regina looked to Emma as if she suddenly had three heads.

"Now, why on earth would my morning coffee be decaf? I don't remember requesting that."

"I could tell you that it's for the baby, but I'm sure you'll have some kind of response for that. Honestly, I thought that since you gave up caffeine for me while I was pregnant with Gwen, that I would do the same thing for you. You're really only allowed so much of it per day anyway so this way, you don't use all of your daily allowance first thing in the morning." Emma looked down at her plate while she absentmindedly moved her fork, pushing what was left of her eggs around.

Regina's jaw momentarily dropped, but immediately she recomposed herself. She walked purposefully to Emma and leaned in close to whisper in the blonde's ear in a low raspy voice.

"Honey, I really appreciate you giving up caffeine for me. However, I would really have appreciated a fair warning of this. I certainly would not have agreed to start this on one of the most emotionally challenging days, or weeks, if you wanted to look at it that way." Regina pulled back a little to look into Emma's eyes. "Let's just focus on bringing Henry home for now, but after we stop at Granny's and get me a proper cup of coffee. I don't think you'll want to see me later if I don't have that."

"Okay, Gina, you got it." Emma smiled. "I love you."

"I love you too, honey." Regina replied.

XXXXX

That afternoon, Henry was finally brought home from the hospital. Yes, after Regina got her cup of Granny's coffee. Regina was tending to Henry's every need and almost having a heart attack every time he tried to move around his bed on his own. Emma was given the task of watching Gwen for the rest of the afternoon. Having Henry home again was extremely exciting for Gwen, but the excitement lasted for all of ten minutes and then she got bored with the fact that once again, he was stuck in bed and couldn't play with her.

Soon enough, though, it was time to get ready for Gwen's lesson with Rumplestiltskin.

"Honey, we have to get going. Henry will be fine for an hour. I promise." Emma hollered up the stairs to her wife who was doting on her son. Shortly thereafter, Regina was swiftly walking along the hallway towards the staircase.

"I can't believe we're doing this, Emma. I swore to myself long ago that any children of mine would never get near that… that bastard!"

"Whoa, whoa. Slow down there, honey. Calm down." The blonde responded, climbing the stairs quickly to gather her wife in her arms to hopefully give some kind of comfort. "We'll both be right there with Gwen when she is learning. Remember, we are doing this so she can learn to control her magic. We don't know the first thing about teaching a young child, such a powerful young child that has already developed a magical ability. Regina, we both know this is what has to happen."

The brunette gazed into the blonde's eyes, trying to seek some hint of security. Granted, she knew this was how it had to be. If she didn't allow Gwen the lessons that she needs, bad things could happen. She knows what it's like to know you're doing bad things, but yet not be able to control them or stop it. That feeling is the last thing that she wants for her daughter.

Gwen, however, seemed to be rather excited about being able to do something new with somebody other than her close family. She skipped down the hallway towards her mothers, not stopping as she approached.

Come on, Mommies. We gotta go now. We gonna be late.

Of course, the brunette is not quite yet used to the idea of Gwen having the power to communicate via telepathy, but this also served as another reminder of why they were doing what they were about to.

"Yes, you're right, Gwennie. Let's get going."

XXXXX

*Regina's POV*

Walking into the pawn shop, or what used to be a pawn shop, brought back too many unpleasant memories. Not necessarily just from here in Storybrooke, but also from all of those trinkets that belonged to other people in the Enchanted Forest. I never wanted to step foot back into this place. How the despicable fool thinks that he is still capable of teaching magic is beyond me. Granted, he has had centuries more experience than I have but nonetheless, he's still a raging dumbas… Okay, fine. I won't go there, but can I at least just say that this poor excuse of a man is not going to bring any darkness back into my life or bring it anywhere near my daughter? Yes, I thought so.

"Well, well, well. Look who decided to show." Rumple had graced us with his presence. Albeit unwanted. Can't blame a mother for hoping for a no-show. "Mrs. Swan-Mills, I assumed that only one of the girl's parents would be present during her lesson."

"Well, Rumple, you know what they say about assuming. Makes an ass out of you and me. Or maybe you never knew that." Emma quickly replied with a sly smirk on her face.

"Yes. Very well." He obviously was rather unamused by the playful antics of my darling wife. "Shall we begin?"

"Ah, before you do begin, Rumple," I had to get some words in. Make sure he is well aware of my stance in this particular case. "I would like to know exactly what your intentions are for the lesson today. If it is something rather difficult for a four year old, then I have no problem with declaring these lessons as too much for my daughter."

"No worries, mommy-dearest! Gwen will surely be able to accomplish all that we are doing. We'll simply be learning how to move objects. What are her current abilities?"

"So far, we know she can speak to us telepathically. At first, it was just myself. We believed it to be because I carried her until birth. But then, just the other day, she tapped Regina's nose while we were bringing her breakfast and then suddenly Regina was able to hear Gwen via telepathy. That, accompanied by the accidents that have happened, made us believe that we needed to make sure she was able to control her own magic."

"Very good deductions, dearie. It's about time somebody listened to me." I definitely noticed the slight glare aimed at me.

"Okay, well enough of that. Let's get this show on the road."

"Nicely put, darling. I would really prefer if it wasn't a show." Why does my wife always have to try to be funny or sarcastic? Seriously, my nerves just can't handle it. Especially with this new baby growing inside me like a leech. Oh my goodness. Where did that come from? Why am I calling my unborn child a parasite? Okay, enough of this. Back to Gwen's lesson. "Gwendolyn, come here please."

The young blonde slowly made herself appear from behind her blonde mother. I put my hand out, signaling Gwen to take it and come stand in front of me. Kneeling down to her height, I look straight into her brilliant blue eyes. I swear her eye color changes from day to day.

"Gwendolyn. Listen to Mommy closely. This man is Mr. Rumple. He is going to help you with some magic. But if you are uncomfortable-, do you know what uncomfortable means?" Gwen nodded her head yes. "If you feel uncomfortable because of what he is having you do or anything at all, you just tell him to stop and come see Mommy or Momma. Okay?"

"Okay, Mommy." Gwen smiled at me.

"Okay. Now, go to Mr. Rumple. He'll help you." Hopefully. My daughter walked away from me and towards her new teacher. I really hope that I'm not making a mistake.

Gwen was supposed to have an hour long lesson with Rumple. That would have been really great, however, we were just getting to the forty-five minute mark when Gwen was getting really fidgety. That is very rare for her. She only gets that way when she feels uncomfortable. Oh no. I squeeze Emma's hand that I've been holding for who knows how long now. She glances over to me.

"Emma, something is wrong. Gwen is getting really fidgety up there. Can you tell if it's Rumple?" I whispered.

Emma looks back over to our daughter but notices nothing out of the ordinary with Rumple. He was staying true to his word.

Then I heard a small whimper.

Looking up at Gwen, she's cowering behind Rumple who seems to be completely bewildered at her behavior. It doesn't take much for me to be out of my chair and over to my daughter in a heartbeat and taking her into my arms.

"Gwen, baby, what's wrong? Did Mr. Rumple scare you?"

"No, Mommy. It's a scary lady." She turns to bury her face into my neck. I look around but I notice no scary lady. Rumple and Emma just look completely dumbstruck like they have no idea what to do.

"Baby, I don't see a scary lady. Can you point to her for me?" Sure enough, Gwen pointed over to the corner, but nothing was there.

Suddenly, I feel a chill in the air. One that I remember from a long time ago. One that I had hoped that I had gotten rid of.

A low cackle filled the air and I knew exactly who was there.

"Maleficent. Show yourself." I watch the corner of the room. At this point, Emma is next to me pulling Gwen behind her.

"Hahaha. Very well." A cloudy white mist appeared then dissipated to reveal my old time friend. If you could call her that. "Regina, my dear. How lovely it is to see you again."

"I think not, Maleficent. What the hell do you think you were doing coming here like that?"

"Oh, just a little bit of revenge, really. Your precious daughter seems like the very powerful type. Pretty excellent to get back at you with, don't you agree?" The blonde with asked while walking a bit closer to myself and my family. Rumple has removed himself from in between the two women. He really wants no part in this. At least not yet.

"You won't get near her. I WILL destroy you if it is-"

"-the last thing you'll do. Yes, yes. I know all about it. Why do you think I'm here, Regina? Certainly, it isn't to catch up on old gossip." She started moving even closer to me. "You have something I want, and I'm not going to stop trying for it until I get it."

"You and what force? I can take you any day of the week and you know that." I had to try, right?

"I have some backup this time. Maybe you know him. Goes by the name, Hades."

That stopped me dead.

"No."

"Oh, yes, Regina. Think you're so tough? Just wait until we're ready. There is nothing that you can do to stop us."

Okay, I've had enough of this.

I raise my hands to heart level. Emma does the same. Before I really can comprehend, magic is being thrown back and forth. Bright purple and blue crashing into white, creating a barrier between good and evil. Just like the good ole days, except this time I had assistance.

After a few minutes of throwing insults and magic around, I can feel my strength dwindling. The shield that I had created for Gwen was dissipating and I couldn't get it back up. Quite suddenly, I feel a pull in my lower abdomen that feels like magic. I look down and notice that it was indeed magic. The reinforcement that I needed to protect Gwen.

"We can't go on like this forever, Maleficent." Something's gotta give.

"You'd be surprised at my stamina." She replies.

Out of nowhere, I hear a small bell ringing. The bell into the shop. And then the door slams closed.

All magic ceased as we looked to the door.

There, standing with a backpack slung over her shoulder and a duffle bag in her left hand, was a younger brunette. She looked as though her jaw was literally going to hit the floor. After several moments of all of us just staring at her, she finally spoke.

"Hi, um… I'm just here to ask for directions. I thought I was heading in the right direction but I was lead here. And I'm not exactly sure where here is. I need to get to Mifflin St. 108 Mifflin St., to be exact. Would you be able to help me?"

That's my address. Oh shit. Is this Henry's girlfr- Oh, damn. Crystal blue eyes. Yep, that's her. She's got to get out of here.

Before I could answer, gold magic was flying by me and hit Kyra, knocking her out as she landed on the wooden floor with a soft thud.


	10. The Visitor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DO NOT OWN OUAT OR ABC OR ANY CHARACTERS WITHIN except Gwen. I created her!

*Regina's POV*

This is not how I imagined meeting my son's girlfriend for the first time. I know she was planning on being here today but I was certain Henry had given her good enough directions. How did she even end up at Gold's shop? That's not even on the way.

What is Henry going to say when he hears about this?

Walking in the front door has never been so daunting. My nerves sky-rocketed as I stepped over the threshold. My little blonde daughter led us through the foyer and into my office where Emma laid Kyra on the sofa. She was still knocked out cold.

"So, we should probably tell Henry that she's here." Emma turned to look at me with a very concerned look on her face.

"I'll do it, Mommy!" Gwen said excitedly as she began to bolt out the door. Before she could get too far though, her blonde mother had caught her around her waist and lifted her to her hip.

"No, baby girl. Momma or Mommy has to do it. Henry might get pretty upset about how she got here." The features on Gwen's faced showed that she was confused about the decision but she wasn't about to argue.

"Okay, Momma. Can I go play now?"

"Yes, baby." Emma kissed the little girl's forehead and set her down just for her to run off to her play room. Both mothers watched as she scurried out of the room.

It amazes me just how quickly young minds can be distracted from the topic on hand.

"Emma. This is not good. Kyra did not deserve to find out about Henry's family history in this way. It's like when you first got to town and Henry telling you his therapist was Jiminy Cricket, the diner's waitress is really a werewolf, and that his own mother was the Evil Queen. I mean, come on, Emma, this isn't going to go over well. She might think that we're crazy. And if we're crazy, then that'll mean Henry is crazy and she'll want nothing to do with that. Then she'll leave him and I, for one, do not wish to be the cause of Henry losing a true love, if that's what they are. I mean-"

"Gina. Calm down, sweetie." Emma's words pulled me out of my troubling thoughts and my pacing. "Nothing like that is going to happen. Remember what Henry wanted when we were trying to figure things out? He asked for the truth. He didn't want to be knowingly lied to. If I know Henry at all, he's going to find someone that will be rather similar in this regard. So, let's just hope that's the case. But we are going to go talk to him before we say anything to Kyra. Does that work for you?" Emma raised her hand to my face and continued to look into my eyes. She was being sincere and thoughtful. Suddenly, I was glad that she was so brave in worrisome situations.

"Yes. I think I can work with that."

"Good. Because not only will we have to explain our family's magical abilities, we also have to explain that fairytales are true. I think we will have to prepare ourselves for an onslaught of questions." Emma smirked gazing behind me momentarily. I had to laugh at her reaction of her own word usage.

"Look at you, Ms. Smartypants. Someone has been studying the dictionary."

"No, love. I've just been around you too long." I laughed again.

"I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not."

"You may take it however you please. Just remember that you need me to get through the next however many hours to explain to our son what happened and then to this girlfriend how she magically ended up unconscious."

"Yes, I know, darling. Let's go talk to Henry before Kyra wakes up." I grabbed Emma's hand and led her towards the door. Before we were out of the room, I took one more glance at Kyra to make sure she was still knocked out. She most definitely was.

XXXXX

"Henry, we have something we need to talk to you about." The blonde said as she entered her son's bedroom. Closely followed by her brunette wife.

"Oh hey, Ma. Hey Mom. What's up?" Henry looked up from his laptop screen to address both of his mothers.

"Umm… well, just hang with us until we get all of the information out, okay? It's going to be hard to understand."

"Okay… you're kinda scaring me. What happened?"

"While your mom and I were with Gwen at her magic lesson, Kyra happened to walk in."

"Wait. WHAT?! Kyra's here? Why isn't she up here? Wait. What happened to her?"

"Henry. Slow down. I told you to just listen. You'll get all of your answers. Okay?"

"Okay. Yeah. Sorry."

"Alright. Well, during Gwen's lesson, we had a bit of an altercation with one of your mother's old enemies. Or frenemies. Just depends on how you want to look at it, I guess." Emma looked to Regina for confirmation. The brunette just nodded her head.

"During the fight, your mom was busy trying to get her magic to function properly and to protect Gwen, but then…"

XXXXX

(Back in Rumple's shop)

Out of nowhere, I hear a small bell ringing. The bell into the shop. And then the door slams closed.

All magic ceased as we looked to the door.

There, standing with a backpack slung over her shoulder and a duffle bag in her left hand, was a younger brunette. She looked as though her jaw was literally going to hit the floor. After several moments of all of us just staring at her, she finally spoke.

"Hi, um… I'm just here to ask for directions. I need to get to Mifflin St. 108 Mifflin St., to be exact. Would you be able to help me?"

That's my address. Oh shit. Is this Henry's girlfr- Oh, damn. Crystal blue eyes. Yep, that's her. She's got to get out of here.

Before I could answer, gold magic was flying by me and hit Kyra, knocking her out as she landed on the wooden floor with a soft thud.

"Dammit. That's not good. Regina, why was she trying to get to our house?" Emma asked.

"Because that's Henry's girlfriend. I don't know how she got lost enough to make it all the way over here."

"Okay. Henry's girlfriend. Right… Shit. This isn't gonna go over very well."

"No, honey. I don't think this is going to go over very well at all."

"But here's a better question: Who used the visibly gold magic to knock her out? Or at least, I hope that's all it did." Emma looked back to me. Then both of us looked to Rumple.

"Not me, dearie. I couldn't care less about that girl." Rumple answered. Remembering that my enemy was standing in the corner, I turned back towards her.

"Maleficent. You need to go find somewhere to be. You know this won't go the way you want it to. Come back when you actually know what you're doing."

"I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss my power, your Majesty, but I will give you time to regroup. Next time, don't plan on the little ones to defend your life for you!" With nothing more said, a plume of smoke appeared where Maleficent had been standing. Once it dissipated, it was confirmed that she was no longer there.

"Okay. I'm still confused here. Who did that magic belong to?" Emma looked to me. I shrugged my shoulders, then looked down to my abdomen. It couldn't be. There's no way that the baby could save Henry and Gwen all in the same week. But then I look down at Gwen. She's staring at the ground with her hands clasped together in front of her and swaying back and forth. It was the totally guilty stance that the young blonde had adopted from her blonde mother. Kneeling down next to my daughter, I lift her chin just enough so I can see into her eyes.

"Gwen, did you use your magic? It's okay if you did. Momma and I would just like to know if it was you."

"Yes, Mommy. It was me." To say I was shocked was an understatement. I looked over to Emma to see that she also had the same reaction.

"Baby, why did you do that?"

"She was scared, Mommy. Just like me. That bad lady was going to kill her if she said another word."

"Gwennie, you did a very good thing. You might have saved her." Emma said as she came up behind me. She put her left arm around my shoulder and placed her right hand on Gwen's.

"Alright, baby. Let's go home. We have to take Kyra to Henry."

"Okay, Mommy."

XXXXX

"…and Gwen basically saved your girlfriend's life, by the sounds of it." Emma finished.

"Wow. Umm… that's a lot to take in. But she's okay though, right?" He looked eagerly to both Emma and Regina.

"Yes, Henry. She's just fine. Kyra is currently passed out on the sofa in my office. Our most important concern now is what we're going to tell her when she wakes up. She saw magic, Henry, how are you going to explain that?"

"Simple. Tell her the truth." Henry said nonchalantly.

"Seriously? You just want to tell her? Just like that? Henry, is there something you're not telling us?" Regina looked into her son's eyes for what felt like hours trying to find an answer.

"Yes, there is. A few weeks back, Kyra actually asked me why she hadn't been allowed to come visit over the summer. I told her that my family was different and that I needed to make sure that the truth wasn't going to make her run away. When I mentioned that my family had magical powers, she thought I was lying to her. I finally convinced her that I was telling the truth. So she felt confident enough that she could tell me that one of the families that she had grown up with had desensitized her to all the differences in the world and that she should be accepting of others no matter what their differences. She already had to overcome the fact that I have two mothers."

"And she's okay with all of that?"

"Yeah, in fact, she was actually envious of my family. Our family hadn't always been together like this but she loved hearing about the journey of getting it there. I think one of her favorite stories is that time that you took Mom to that karaoke bar and actually got her to sing in front of the whole crowd." Henry laughed at this. Regina seemed unamused and somewhat confused at how this conversation was not going at all how she had imagined it in her head. Emma was just smirking and remembering that fantastic performance the brunette had put on.

"Well, I guess we were overreacting to the possibilities of this conversation, Emma." Regina began. "I think I'm just going to go down and keep an eye on Kyra so when she wakes up, she's not alone."

"Oh, come on, Gina. Henry was just trying to make you smile. You've got to admit that your performance that night was quite exquisite."

"It may have been exquisite, but there are more important dealings at hand than reminiscing of old times." The brunette was still not happy with their situation, even if they didn't have to deal with too much shock from Kyra. Without much lingering, Regina left Henry and Emma to go sit with Kyra until she woke up.

"Well, kid, I guess I should go do damage control. I don't think that went overly well and I still haven't gotten a good grasp on your mother's hormonal mood swings yet." The blonde said as she turned towards the door.

"Yeah, that'll be a good thing. Apologize for me, please? I don't want Mom to think that I am ungrateful for her worries about Kyra. It's just… I already started talking to her about our family. She isn't going to be greatly shocked."

"Yeah, kid. I can do that. Get some rest, okay? As soon as Kyra is awake, she'll probably want to see you."

"Thanks, Ma. Love you."

"Love you too, Henry."

XXXXX

Regina walked back downstairs and suddenly felt nauseous. She knew why, but that didn't make it any easier for her to understand why it was coming on at that moment. Though, from her experience so far, she knew she had to get to the bathroom quickly. And that's exactly what she did. How long she had been there, she would never know. At least, not until Emma found her.

"Honey, are you okay? I thought you were going to sit with Kyra." The blonde said as she walked into the bathroom. She slowly moved to sit next to her wife on the floor. Regina's eyes were closed but her head was leaning against the wall.

"I was, but I decided that I really needed to spend some time on the bathroom floor."

"Okay, no need for the sass. I'm just asking if you're okay."

"Yes, Emma, I'm okay. Now. I was fine when I left you two upstairs, but then the minute I reached the bottom of the stairs, I felt completely nauseous. So I ran in here and haven't left. I hoped that you would eventually just find me."

"Well, that, I did. But I don't like that you've been sick so much lately."

"Honey, I'm pregnant. Morning sickness is a common ailment for the first couple months."

"Yes, but you've been sick enough to make me believe that there's something else going on. Babe, I think we should schedule an appointment with Dr. Whale." Regina just stared at Emma. "I'm serious. I'm calling the hospital and scheduling an appointment."

"Fine. I won't say no but don't think that I'm happy about it. I really hate doctors. Especially that one."

"Well, you better learn to like him because he's going to be your best friend for the next seven months." Regina rolled her eyes at that comment. Not in a million years would she be caught with a friend like him. Emma started giggling. "I'm just kidding, honey. But I am still calling the hospital."

"No, Emma, please. Let's just see what this weekend brings. If it continues to get worse, then we can go on Monday. I don't want to alarm the kids and you know that Gwen will figure it out. We've just had a very rough week and I probably just made myself a little too excited."

The blonde put her arm around her wife and pulled the brunette against her. Regina's head was now leaning on Emma and small, almost microscopic, tears were falling from her eyes.

"Okay. We'll wait until Monday. I love you so much, Gina. I really hate seeing you not feel well."

"I love you, too. So much." Regina replied as she wrapped her arm around the blonde's waist.

"Alright. As much as I love this position and holding you, my butt is literally getting numb. We should probably also go check on Kyra."

"Yes, you are probably right. Let's go." And to check on Kyra they went.


End file.
